Multi-layer-multi-turn high efficiency inductors with cavity structures

ABSTRACT

A multi-layer, multi-turn structure for an inductor having a plurality of conductor layers separated by layers of insulator is described. The inductor further comprises a connector electrically connected between the conductor layers. The structure of the inductor may comprise a cavity therewithin. The structure of the inductor constructed such that electrical resistance is reduced therewithin, thus increasing the efficiency of the inductor. The inductor is particularly useful at operating within the radio frequency range and greater.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. applicationSer. No. 13/233,569, filed Sep. 15, 2011, which is acontinuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/255,659, filed Sep.9, 2011, which is a 371 application of International Application No.PCT/US2010/000714, filed Mar. 9, 2010, which is a nonprovisional of U.S.Provisional Application No. 61/158,688, filed Mar. 9, 2009, thedisclosures of which are entirely incorporated herein by reference.

The present application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. applicationSer. No. 13/255,659, filed Sep. 9, 2011, which is a 371 application ofInternational Application No. PCT/US2010/000714, filed Mar. 9, 2010,which is a nonprovisional of U.S. Provisional Application No.61/158,688, filed Mar. 9, 2009, the disclosures of which are entirelyincorporated herein by reference.

The present patent application also hereby incorporates by reference theentire contents of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/233,538, filedSep. 15, 2011; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/233,624, filed Sep.15, 2011; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/233,663, filed Sep. 15,2011; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/233,686, filed Sep. 15, 2011;U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/233,729, filed Sep. 15, 2011; U.S.patent application Ser. No. 13/233,735, filed Sep. 15, 2011; and U.S.patent application Ser. No. 13/233,751, filed Sep. 15, 2011.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to electrical circuitcomponents, and more specifically, to the design, operation and methodof manufacture of an efficient inductor and related systems thereof.

2. Prior Art

Inductors have been extensively utilized in electrical circuits for manyyears dating back to the late 1800s. Inductors are utilized in justabout every electrical circuit and they play a vital role in theoperation of numerous electronic devices from modern televisions tosatellite communication systems. There are two common types of prior artinductors, the first type are wire wound inductors, and the second typeare ceramic based inductors. Wire wound inductors have historically beenconstructed of a metal coil that is wrapped around a core of air,paramagnetic, or ferromagnetic material. Ceramic-based inductors aretypically multilayer, film or wire-wound technologies, each havingfeatures that provide characteristics suitable for various applications.

In an inductor, electric current travels through the metallic coilgenerating a magnetic flux that is proportional to the amount ofelectric current. A change in electrical current elicits a correspondingmagnetic flux proportional to the amount of current, which in turn,generates an electromotive force (EMF), measured in volts, that opposesthe change in current. Inductance is a measure of the amount of EMFgenerated per unit change in current. For example, an inductor with aninductance of 5 henries produces an EMF of 5 volts when the currentthrough the inductor changes at a rate of 5 amperes per second.

A pure or “ideal inductor” is an inductor that is one hundred percentefficient. Such an ideal inductor does not dissipate or radiate energy.However, inductors utilized in electrical circuits are not theoreticalideal inductors, but rather, are “real inductors”, in that they haveinternal losses that dissipate or radiate energy and contribute to theoverall inefficiency of the inductor. Energy loss within an inductor isgenerally due to internal electrical resistance which is generally theresult of the traditional structure and design of an inductor, forexample, wherein a coil is wrapped around a core of air or some materialor wherein a coil structure is associated with a ceramic substrate.

Specifically, the electrical resistance within an inductor is generallycaused by the cumulative effects of the electrical resistance of thecoil structure that is either a wire wrapped around a core material or atrace, film or mounted wire on a ceramic substrate. This internal lossbecomes more pronounced as the operating frequency is increased. At highfrequencies, particularly at radiofrequencies (RF) and greater,inductors of the prior art, typically have higher electrical resistanceand other losses. In addition to causing power loss, in inductancecircuits this can reduce the quality factor (Q factor) of the inductorand the electrical circuit, broadening the bandwidth. In prior artceramic based inductors, for example, Q factor values at of about 5 toabout 30 are generally achieved at a given frequency. Prior art wirewound inductors with either air or ferrite cores have Q values on theorder of 50 to 100. Furthermore, the Q values of these prior artinductors significantly degrade with increasing operating frequency.

The multi-layer, multi-turn inductor of the present invention performsat greater efficiencies in a similar volume and at similar efficienciesin a substantially smaller volume. In particular, the inductor of thepresent invention performs at greater efficiencies, particularly at RFfrequencies and greater. In operation, the multi-layer, multi-turninductor of the present invention generally has a Q factor that is about20 to 30 percent greater than the inductor designs of the prior art.

The relatively low quality factor of these inductors is mainly due tohigher resistive losses caused by a phenomenon known as the “skineffect.” Generally, skin effect is the tendency of an alternatingelectric current (AC) to distribute itself within a conductor such thatthe current density is more predominant near the surface of theconductor with the remaining conductor body ‘unused’ relative toelectrical current flow. The remaining conductor body is ‘unused’relative to electrical current flow because the current densitytypically decays with distance therewithin away from the surface of theconductor. The electric current flows mostly near the surface, and isreferred to as the “skin” of the conductor. The depth at which thecurrent decays to about 37% of the magnitude than at the surface iscalled the “skin depth.” The “skin depth” then defines the electricalcurrent cross-sectional area that is carries most of the current (isactive) in the conducting wire of an inductor, whether the inductor wireis wire that is wound around a core material, or a wire that is a trace,a film or a mount on a ceramic substrate.

In inductors, particularly those operating in the RF frequency range andabove, the skin effect phenomenon generally causes energy loss ascurrent flows through the wire of the inductor and circuit. Higherresistive loss at high frequencies is a problem faced by most electronicdevices or appliances. Skin effect becomes more prevalent when operatingfrequency increases. With higher frequencies, current that normallyflows through the entire cross section of the wire comprising theinductor becomes restricted to its surface. As a result, the effectiveresistance of the wire is similar to that of a thinner wire rather thanof the actual diameter through which the current could be distributed. Awire exhibiting tolerable resistance for efficient performance at lowfrequency transitions into a wire of unacceptable resistance at highfrequency. The transition from tolerable to unacceptable resistancetranslates into inefficient lower quality factor values of the inductorand overall electrical circuit. Additionally, current inductor designsdo not resolve these inefficiencies, and, in some cases, exacerbate theinefficiencies of the electrical circuit, particularly at high RFfrequencies. Although not exhaustive, typical applications limited bycurrent inductor technology include, for example, radio frequencyidentification (RFID), battery charging and recharging, telemetry,sensing, communication, asset tracking, patient monitoring, data entryand/or retrieval, induction heating, electromagnetic field generation,RF matching, RF chokes, RF MEMs, electronic switching, interferencefiltering, oscillators, amplifiers, induction heating, microwavecircuits, magnetic resonance imaging, and the like. Further, theseinductor fabrication techniques are relatively complex and are costprohibitive.

In RFID applications, such as supply chain management, productauthenticity, and asset tracking, there is a need to increase readrange, increase read rates, improve system reliability and improvesystem accuracy. At high frequency for example, read range is at mostthree feet which is generally insufficient for pallet tracking. Ultrahigh frequency readers enable greater read distances of eight to tenfeet, however, they introduce other performance issues like signals thatare reflected by metal or are absorbed by water, or display unreadable,null spots in read fields. Increased read range requires concentratedpower to facilitate reflecting back the signal for better performance,hence, a more efficient structure could help solve these issues.

In applications requiring efficient low loss coils which need tomaintain inductance under harsh conditions, conventional wire-basedinductors could be deformed. It is well known that any deformation ofthe wire cross-section will lead to a change in inductance and possiblyresistance, which in turn will change the resonance frequency of theinductor and consequently may increase overall system resistance anddegrade system performance. Improved methods of manufacturing thesetypes of structures that reduce the potential for compromisingdeformation could eliminate this problem. The present teachings includemethods of manufacture that include both rigid structure designs andflexible structure designs.

Litz wires were developed, in part, in an attempt to address the issuesdiscussed above. However, Litz wires are generally insufficient for usein high frequency applications, and are therefore generally not usefulin applications having operating frequencies above about 3 MHz.Furthermore, inductors constructed with Litz wire tend to deform underphysical stresses and deteriorate when exposed to harsh environmentalconditions. A Litz wire is a wire consisting of a number of individuallyinsulated magnet wires twisted or braided into a uniform pattern, sothat each wire strand tends to take all possible positions in thecross-section of the entire conductor. This multi-strand configurationor Litz construction is designed to minimize the power losses exhibitedin solid conductors due to “skin effect” and “proximity effect”. Litzwire constructions attempt to counteract this effect by increasing theamount of surface area without significantly increasing the size of theconductor. However, even properly constructed Litz wires exhibit someskin effect due to the limitations of stranding. Wires intended forhigher frequency ranges generally require more strands of a finer gaugesize than Litz wires of equal cross-sectional area, but these higherfrequency wires are composed of fewer and larger strands. Further, thehighest frequency at which providers of Litz wires offer configurationscapable of improving efficiencies is about 3 MHz. There is currently nosolution for applications with operating frequencies beyond this 3 MHzmaximum frequency limit. Additionally, there is currently no solutionthat improves efficiency in a given size or provides similar efficiencyin a smaller size.

Hence a need exists for an improved high efficiency design and method ofmanufacture that reduces the intrinsic resistive losses of the inductorstructure, and in particular reduces intrinsic resistive losses of theinductor at high frequencies to achieve high quality factors.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The teachings herein alleviate one or more of the above noted problemsof higher resistive losses at high frequencies resulting in lowerquality factors by utilizing the multi-layer wire concept to increasethe area of conductance within an inductor structure. The multi-layerwire configuration results in a reduction of resistance loss and anincrease in the qualify factor of the inductor structure and resultingelectrical circuit. The present teachings apply to the structure anddesign of a novel inductor for incorporation within electrical circuits.Most notably electrical circuits that operate within and above the radiofrequency range of at least 3 kHz.

One aspect of the present teachings is of an inductor wherein resistivelosses within the inductor are minimized by maximizing useful conductorcross-sectional area in a wire cross section. In one embodiment, theinductor mitigates the unwanted high frequency skin effect by creatingthe following structure: by introducing non-conducting or poorlyconductive dielectric layers within its wire, resulting in a structurethat comprises layers of conducting material alternating with layers ofnon-conducting or poorly conducting material. The structure effectivelyprovides an increased number of surfaces each with its characteristicskin depth and all electrically, or otherwise, connected. The skin depthmay range from approximately one-half of the conductor depth to aboutequal to the conductor depth. The conductor depth may be in the range ofskin depth to twice the skin depth. However, depending on the availabletechnology, costs, and application, the conductor depth may be as largeas twenty times or more the skin depth.

The inductor typically includes a coil having at least one turn whereinthe coil is made up of a multi-layer wire. In some instances, thedesired inductance may be achieved with the coil having a partial turn.For example, the coil or segment of a coil, such as an arc of a circleor side of a polygon, may be positioned such that it does not complete afull turn or revolution. A fraction or partial turn may be used inaddition to a set of full turns to achieve a specific inductance value.Furthermore, the conductor layers and/or insulative dielectric layersmay be composed of differing materials.

In another embodiment, the desired inductance may be achieved whereinthe multi-layer wire comprises different materials in at least twolayers. For example, the coil or a segment of a coil, may comprise athin layer of conductive material, i.e., a conductive trace that isdeposited on a surface of one or multiple insulative and/or conductivelayers. Furthermore, different materials may be used throughout the MLMTinductor structure. For example, one insulative layer may comprise adifferent insulative material than another insulative layer. Likewise, aconductive layer may comprise a different conductive material thananother conductive layer. Such use of different conductive andinsulative materials, as will be discussed further, may be used tomodify or tune the inductance and performance efficiency of the MLMTinductor at different operating frequencies. In addition, the use ofsuch materials, particularly insulative materials, may also be used tocontrol and minimize heat that may be generated by the MLMT inductor,particularly at increased frequencies.

The desired inductance can also be achieved by the combination of turns,or partial turns, with the different material or materials that comprisethe coil or segment of the coil. Hence, it is left to the designer touse several layers and/or multiple conductive traces, all of which areconnected in a manner to specifically achieve an application need or anapplication use specification.

In another embodiment, the desired inductance may be achieved or tunedusing specific non-conducting or poorly conducting materials, such assemi-conducting materials, to separate the conductive layers, or it maybe achieved by creating a cavity within the layer or layers and fillingit with specific materials that contribute to the overall inductance ofthe final inductor component. The multi-layer wire may include a firstand second conductive layer separated by a layer of insulating material.The conductive layers may have substantially the same thickness and/ordepth, wherein the thickness and/or depth may be in the range of skindepth to twice the skin depth. However, depending on the availabletechnology, costs, and application, the conductor thickness and/or depthmay be as large as twenty times or more the skin depth. Each conductivelayer may be electrically connected to each other using at least onemethod of interconnect, such as but not limited to a via, a solder, atab, a wire, a pin, or a rivet.

One purpose of the non-conducting layer is to insulate two differentconducting layers. The most basic design of the non-conducting layerwould ideally be as thin as the manufacturing process practicallypermits, while still providing sufficient insulating properties. Forexample, in PCB technology, the thickness of layers is dictated by the“core thickness” and the prepreg thickness. In another design, thethickness of the non-conducting layer is selected to modify theelectrical behavior of the structure. In another embodiment, thethickness of the non-conducting layer may be modified to minimizeperformance degradation due to “proximity effects.” In yet anotherembodiment, the conductors on each layer may be staggered fromsubsequent layers to reduce “proximity effects.” In another embodiment,the conductor widths may be different from each other to account for theproximity effect. It is possible that all the above mentionedembodiments may be implemented simultaneously in the same structure, oronly a subset of the embodiment may be implemented.

The multi-layer, multi-turn inductor of the present invention generallyhas a quality factor that is greater than inductors of prior art designsand constructions. While the quality factor varies with operatingfrequency and inductance, the quality factor of the multi-layer,multi-turn inductor of the present invention may range from about 5 toover 100 or more. For example, a multi-layer, multi-turn inductor of asurface mount design, having a foot print of about 1.6 mm by 0.8 mm, andoperating at about 100 MHz may have a quality factor of about 10, morepreferably of about 20 and most preferably of about 40 or more.

In another example, an inductor used in wireless power applicationshaving a diameter of about 2.5 cm and an inductance of about 48 uH,operating at a frequency between about 110 to 205 KHz may have a QF ofabout 15, more preferably of about 25 and most preferably of about 45 ofgreater.

In a further example, an inductor used in a high frequency applicationhaving a footprint of about 6.4 mm by about 5.0 mm and an inductanceabout 35 nH, operating at a frequency of about 150 MHz may have a QF ofabout 135, preferably of about 150 and most preferably of about 190 orgreater.

In another example, an inductor used in a wireless communication circuithaving a footprint of about 1 mm by 0.5 mm and an inductance of about1.6 nH, operating at a frequency of about 250 MHz may have a QF of about20, more preferably of about 30 and most preferably of about 45 orgreater.

In yet another example, an inductor used in a wireless power or RFIDapplication having a footprint of about 4.8 cm by about 4.8 cm and aninductance about 5 uH, operating at a frequency of about 13.56 MHz mayhave a QF of about 30, more preferably of about 70, and most preferablyof about a 100 or greater.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that systems requiringtwo or more inductors may either have inductors with equal and evensimilar quality factors. Also, it will be apparent to one skilled in theart that systems requiring two or more inductors may utilize inductorswhere one inductor has a quality factor substantially different from theother. The quality factor selection for each inductor will depend on theapplication, the design specification for each and the intended use ofeach inductor. Additionally, it will be apparent to one skilled in theart that the quality factor of an inductor may be dependent on theenvironment in which it is used, so, for example, an inductor that has aquality factor of 20 in air, may only have a quality factor of 10 whenimplanted in human or animal tissue. In any given environment, the MLMTinductor structure described herein should outperform traditionalinductors.

It is important to note that inductors used in high-frequencyapplications often exhibit higher losses due to a phenomenon called theskin effect. Skin effect reduces conductive cross-sectional area,thereby increasing the resistance of a structure. The increasedresistance, in turn, causes higher energy losses in the component. Thereare several disadvantages of the higher energy losses. For example,higher energy losses may cause heating of a component. In some cases,component heating may present a safety risk, could damage equipment, orthe like. To resolve overheating, sometimes costly mechanisms for heatmanagement are incorporated. In other situations, high energy lossessubstantially degrade efficiency. This is particularly undesirable inmobile applications where extended battery life is needed. In the areaof wireless power transfer, particularly wireless power transferutilizing magnetic fields, inductive antennas with high energy lossesresult in limited wireless range, transmission dependence onorientation, and lower power transfer to the point of repeatedunsuccessful transmissions.

As a result, the reduction of losses in the wire and the significantlyreduced internal resistance of the inductor could enable highefficiency, compact electronic systems that consume less energy, havelonger run time and simplify operation without compromising events likeoverheating, undesirable restrictions for successful transmission likeorientation or insufficient power transfer.

In one example, there is disclosed a structure for an inductor that maybe utilized in a variety of non-limiting electronic circuits. Thestructure is designed to produce an inductance with reduced internalloss, particularly reduced electrical resistance at RF ranges and above.In addition, the structure may be designed such that it is capable ofselectively tuning the inductor structure or adjusting its inductanceand/or quality factor to meet application and/or environment.Furthermore, the structure may be capable of transmitting and/orreceiving a combination of electrical energy, electromagnetic energy,electrical power and electronic data together or separately.

The structure may comprise a plurality of conductor layers, an insulatorlayer separating each of the conductor layers, and at least oneconnector connecting two or more of the conductor layers. Each of theplurality of conductor layers may have at least one turn and may furtherbe placed in a parallel orientation. Alternately the layers may bearranged in a perpendicular or an angled relationship. Each conductorlayer may be formed from an electrically conductive material. Theelectrically conductive material may be comprised of copper titanium,platinum and platinum/iridium alloys, tantalum, niobium, zirconium,hafnium, nitinol, cobalt-chromium-nickel alloys, stainless steel, gold,a gold alloy, palladium, carbon, silver, a noble metal or abiocompatible material and any combination thereof.

The conductor layer may have a cross-sectional shape, such as, but notlimited to, a curved cross-section, a circular cross-section, arectangular cross-section, a square cross-section, a triangularcross-section, an elliptical cross-section or a trapezoidalcross-section. The connector connecting the conductor layers may be butis not limited to a via, a solder, a tab, a wire, a pin, or a rivet. Thestructure may have structural shape, such as but not limited to acircular solenoidal configuration, a square solenoidal configuration, acircular spiral configuration, a square spiral configuration, arectangular configuration, a triangular configuration, a circularspiral-solenoidal configuration, a square spiral-solenoidalconfiguration, and a conformal solenoid configuration. Otherconfigurations may be used to modify the electrical properties of thestructure.

Electrical resistance in the multi-layer multi-turn inductor structureof the present invention may be reduced when an electrical signal isinduced in the inductor at a frequency. The frequency may be selectedfrom a frequency range from about 3 kHz to about 10 GHz. Further, thefrequency may be a frequency band that ranges from or is within about 3kHz to about 10 GHz. The electrical signal may be an electrical current,an electrical voltage, a digital data signal or any combination thereof.

The inductor may comprise a plurality of conductors, each conductorhaving a conductor length, a conductor height, a conductor depth, and aconductive surface having a skin depth at the operatingfrequency/frequencies. The skin depth may range from approximatelyone-half of the conductor depth to about equal to the conductor depth.The conductor depth may be in the range of skin depth to twice the skindepth. However, depending on the available technology, costs, andapplication, the conductor depth may be as large as twenty times or morethe skin depth. The plurality of conductor layers may have at least oneturn. Further, each of the plurality of conductor layers may or may nothave substantially the same conductor length, conductor height, orconductor depth. The conductor layers may be formed from an electricallyconductive material.

The electrically conductive material may be comprised of copper,titanium, platinum, platinum/iridium alloys, tantalum, niobium,zirconium, hafnium, nitinol, cobalt-chromium-nickel alloys, stainlesssteel, gold, a gold alloy, palladium, carbon, silver, a noble metal or abiocompatible material and any combination thereof.

The plurality of conductors may be arranged to form an insulator body.The insulator body may have an insulator body length, an insulator bodywidth and an insulator body depth. When an electrical signal is inducedwithin the insulator body, the electrical signal propagatespredominately through the skin depth. The electrical signal may be anelectrical current, an electrical voltage, a digital data signal or anycombination thereof.

The plurality of conductors in the insulator may comprise a firstconductor layer and a second conductor layer separated by an insulatorlayer wherein the first conductor layer is connected to the secondconductor layer or more by at least one connector. The conductor mayhave a cross-sectional shape, such as but not limited to a circularcross-section, a rectangular cross-section, a square cross-section, atriangular cross-section, or an elliptical cross-section. The insulatormay have a structural shape such as but not limited to a circularsolenoidal, a square solenoidal configuration, a circular spiralconfiguration, a square spiral configuration, a rectangularconfiguration, a triangular configuration, a circular spiral-solenoidalconfiguration, a square spiral-solenoidal configuration, or a conformalsolenoid configuration.

There is also disclosed a circuit for selectively adjusting or tuningthe output or performance parameters of the inductor. The circuit may behoused within the inductor body or provided external to the inductor.Such a circuit may be designed to selectively adjust the inductanceand/or the quality factor of the inductor. In addition, the resonancefrequency, the impedance or the quality factor of the electronic circuitwithin which the inductor is connected to. The circuit may be designedto adjust the internal resistance within the inductor, thereby adjustingthe inductor's quality factor. Such a circuit may also be used toselectively adjust the inductance output of the inductor. The circuitmay be triggered or activated manually or automatically, either througha physical or electrical means such as by a multitude of stimuli,including but not limited to an electrical signal or change in itssurrounding environment such as a change in temperature and/or pressure.For example, the quality factor of the inductor may be selectivelyadjusted by changing the internal resistance parameters when the circuitis triggered by a change in external temperature.

Circuits at high frequencies extensively use additional passive elementssuch as inductors, capacitors, and the like. Some examples of suchcircuit configurations include but are not limited to band pass, highpass and low pass filters; mixer circuits (e.g., Gilbert Cell);oscillators such as Colpitts, Pierce, Hartley, and clap; and, amplifierssuch as differential, push pull, feedback, and radio-frequency (RF).Specifically, inductors are used in matching and feedback in low noiseamplifiers (LNAs) as a source degeneration element. Lumped inductors arealso essential elements in RF circuits and monolithic microwaveintegrated circuits (MMICs). Lumped inductors are used in on-chipmatching networks where transmission line structures may be of excessivelength. Often, they are also used as RF chokes allowing bias currents tobe supplied to circuits while providing broad-band high impedance at RFfrequencies and above. RF MEMS switches, matching networks and varactorsthat are ideal for reconfigurable networks, antennas and subsystems alsoneed high Q inductors. Note, passive circuit element and lumped element,such as lumped inductor, may be used interchangeably with passivecircuit element being the broader term. The passive circuit element maybe an inductor, a capacitor, a resistor or just a wire. In nearly allthe above mentioned circuit examples, not meant to be limiting, it isdesired that the passive components are minimally lossy.

A benefit of the multi layer multi turn (MLMT) structure of the inductorof the present invention is its flexibility of design. The MLMTstructure affords the ability to achieve a wide range of inductancevalues with high reliability and efficiency, for a wide range ofapplications. In general, design specifications are created for aparticular application need(s) and/or performance requirement. Forexample, a particular application may require an inductor having aspecific self-inductance, mutual inductance with another inductor, orboth. Such a design specification may also limit size, demand aparticular maximum resistance, or both which may not be able to beachieved by a prior art inductor.

In particular, the electrical efficiencies of the present invention,achieved by the MLMT structure, provide an electrical component designerthe ability to meet or exceed particular application designspecifications that cannot be achieved by today's inductors. Inparticular, the MLMT structure of the present invention provides anefficient, highly reliable inductor that can operate at increasedfrequencies in a smaller size as compared to the prior art. Furthermore,the inductance of the present invention may be designed to be tunable tospecific inductance values while in operation.

Given circuits at high frequencies extensively use passive elements suchas inductors and capacitors, an embodiment is given using but is notlimited to an inductor. Specifically considering an inductor, thedesigns should be such that maximum Q is attained while achieving thedesired inductance value. In other words, the resistive loss in theinductor needs to be minimized. Depending on the frequency of operation,available area on the substrate, the application and the technology, theinductor can be implemented as, but not limited to, a TEM/transmissionline, a conductive loop or conductive loops, or aspiral/solenoid/combination structure of several shapes, for example,but not limited to, a circle, a rectangle, an ellipsoid, a square, or anirregular configuration. All these embodiments, not meant to belimiting, may be realized using the multi-layer structure in the presentinvention.

In another example, an inductor as part of a larger circuit isdiscussed. An inductor is a device or a system that stores energy inproximal magnetic fields at a specific frequency, frequencies, orfrequency band(s), called the inductance frequency, frequencies, orfrequency band(s). At the inductance frequency, frequencies, orfrequency band(s), there is minimum electrical resistance tooscillation. In the context of electrical circuits, there is minimumelectrical resistance at an optimum inductance frequency, frequencies,or frequency band(s). The MLMT structure of the present invention mayact as an inductor under two fundamental conditions: (1) When the MLMTstructure is designed to resonate at a specific frequency, frequencies,or frequency band(s), in its environment without any additionalelectrical components as a self-resonator; (2) When the MLMT structureis designed to resonate at a specific frequency, frequencies, orfrequency band(s), in its environment in combination with othercomponents (for example, but not limited to, a capacitor, a capacitorbank, a capacitor and/or an inductor network). Thus, the inductor may bepart of a larger circuit, and the inductance behavior may be designed tooccur at a frequency, frequencies, or frequency band(s), or at afrequency, frequencies, or frequency band(s) with a certain bandwidth orcertain bandwidths. Additional components (e.g., resistance) may also beadded to alter the bandwidth(s).

Accordingly, it is the unique arrangement of the conductive andinsulative layers, the specific design of these layers, i.e., length,width, material, and, in particular, thickness, coil segmentation, andelectrical connection, that results in its higher efficiency in asimilar or smaller size/volume than the prior art. This outcome isevidenced by quality factors that are more than two times higher thanthe prior art. In addition, there is disclosed a method formanufacturing the multi-layer, multi-turn inductor structure of thepresent invention. The method of manufacture creates a structure that iscapable of providing inductance within an electrical circuit,particularly at RF frequencies and greater.

The method may comprise the steps of creating a plurality of conductorlayers having an insulator between each of the conductor layers andforming at least one connection between two of the plurality ofconductors. The connector connecting the conductor layers may be but isnot limited to a via, a solder, a tab, a wire, a pin, or a rivet. Theconductor layers may be created by depositing through a mask.Alternatively, the conductor layer may be created by etching excessmaterial away. In either case, the step of creating a plurality ofconductor layers having an insulator between each of the conductorlayers may further include the steps of placing a first conductive layeron top of a second conductive layer and separating the first conductivelayer from the second conductive layer with a first insulator. Further,the step of forming at least one connection between two of the pluralityof conductors may include the steps of connecting at least two of theconductive layers comprising but not limited to a via, a solder, a tab,a wire, a pin, or a rivet. The conductor layers may be formed from anelectrically conductive material. The electrically conductive materialmay be comprised of copper, titanium, platinum and platinum/iridiumalloys, tantalum, niobium, zirconium, hafnium, nitinol,cobalt-chromium-nickel alloys, stainless steel, gold, a gold alloy,palladium, carbon, silver, a noble metal or a biocompatible material andany combination thereof.

There is also disclosed a method for operating the multi-layer,multi-turn inductor structure of the present invention to provideinductance within a multitude of electronic circuits. The methodcomprises the steps of providing a structure that is capable ofproviding an inductance with an increased quality factor. In addition,the method provides the steps of providing a structure that is capableof selectively adjusting or tuning the inductor wherein the inductanceoutput and/or the inductor quality factor may be changed manually orautomatically, such as through an electrical means.

The method comprises the steps of providing a plurality of conductors,each conductor having a conductor length, a conductor height, aconductor depth, and a conductive surface having a skin depth at theoperating frequency/frequencies. The skin depth ranges approximatelyone-half of the conductor depth to about equal to the conductor depth.The conductor depth may be in the range of skin depth to twice the skindepth. However, depending on the available technology, costs, andapplication, the conductor depth may be as large as twenty times or morethe skin depth. The plurality of conductors may be arranged to form aninductor body having an inductor body length, an inductor body width andan inductor body depth; and, inducing an electrical signal in at leastone of the plurality of conductors such that the electrical signalpropagates through the conducting surface of the skin depth. Theelectrical signal may be an electrical current, an electrical voltage, adigital data signal or any combination thereof.

The method may also include the step of providing a second plurality ofconductors, each of the second conductors having a second conductorlength, a second conductor height, a second conductor depth, and asecond conductive surface having a second skin depth wherein theplurality of second conductors are arranged to form a second insulatorbody having a second insulator body length, a second insulator bodywidth and a second insulator body depth. When an electrical signal ispropagated through the inductor body, the electrical signal propagatesthrough the conducting surface and further induces an electrical signalthrough the second inductor body, and the induced electrical signalpropagates through the second conducting surface.

The plurality of conductors may comprise a first conductor layer and asecond conductor layer separated by an insulator layer wherein the firstconductor layer is connected to the second conductor layer by at leastone connector. Further, the at least one connection connecting at leasttwo of the conductive layers comprises but is not limited to a via, asolder, a tab, a wire, a pin, or a rivet. The conductor may have across-sectional shape not limited to a circular cross-section, arectangular cross-section, a square cross-section, a triangularcross-section, and an elliptical cross-section. The plurality ofconductor layers may have at least one turn and each of the plurality ofconductor layers may have substantially the same conductor length,conductor height, and conductor depth. The conductor layer may be formedfrom an electrically conductive material. The electrically conductivematerial may be comprised of copper titanium, platinum andplatinum/iridium alloys, tantalum, niobium, zirconium, hafnium, nitinol,cobalt-chromium-nickel alloys, stainless steel, gold, a gold alloy,palladium, carbon, silver, a noble metal or a biocompatible material orany combination thereof.

The inductor may have a structural shape not limited to a circularsolenoidal configuration, a square solenoidal configuration, a circularspiral configuration, a square spiral configuration, a rectangularconfiguration, a triangular configuration, a curved configuration, atrapezoidal configuration, a circular spiral-solenoidal configuration, asquare spiral-solenoidal configuration, and a conformal solenoidconfiguration. Accordingly, the present invention differs substantiallyfrom the prior art in several ways. Unlike the prior art, including Litzwires, the present invention is optimizable for operation at frequenciesup to several hundred MHz. Also, unlike the prior art, especially Litzwires, the present invention is producible by using integratedfabrication technologies such as PCB, Co-fired Ceramic (LTCC and HTCC),flex circuit technology, semiconductor technology, and the like. Hence,the present invention itself and its method of manufacture provide forintegratable inductor structures that are robust, are reproduciblymanufacturable and that perform as required repeatably.

In addition to the differences noted above, the present invention alsooffers a lower cost alternative to the prior art such as Litz wires.Since fabrication of the inductor structure of the present invention isin-situ it requires only one step to create. Litz wire fabrication onthe other hand uses two steps in its fabrication. More notably, however,is that the fabrication process for the present invention allows fordynamic tuning of the MLMT inductor or the inductive structure. Themultilayer fabrication process, in particular, provides for inclusion ofactive devices operating as switches. These switches may activelyconnect or disconnect layers. Judicious selection and use of theseswitches may create unique and different inductance values, resistancevalues or both. Additional components introduced to a circuit, forexample, may increase overall system losses. In particular embodimentsof the present invention, however, tunability becomes possible.Tunability permits losses to be kept below those typical forconventional prior art inductors.

Further, the multilayer structure allows fabrication of in-situ LCcircuits. By appropriately inserting a dielectric material in a formedcavity and/or depositing a large area metal trace, increased capacitancemay be obtained.

Additional advantages and novel features will be set forth in part inthe description which follows, and in part will become apparent to thoseskilled in the art upon examination of the following and theaccompanying drawings or may be learned by production or operation ofthe examples. The advantages of the present teachings may be realizedand attained by practice or use of various aspects of the methodologies,instrumentalities and combinations set forth in the detailed examplesdiscussed below

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The drawing figures depict one or more implementations in accord withthe present teachings, by way of example only, not by way of limitation.In the figures, like reference numerals refer to the same or similarelements.

FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a high-level diagram of an inductorstructure.

FIG. 2A illustrates an inductor in a circular solenoidal configuration.

FIG. 2B illustrates an embodiment of an inductor in a square solenoidalconfiguration.

FIG. 2C illustrates an embodiment of an inductor in a circular spiralconfiguration.

FIG. 2D illustrates an embodiment of an inductor in a square spiralconfiguration.

FIG. 2E illustrates an embodiment of an inductor in a multi-layersquare.

FIG. 2F illustrates an example of an inductor in a circularconical-solenoidal (or pyramidal-solenoidal) configuration.

FIG. 2G illustrates an embodiment of an inductor in a squareconical-solenoidal (or pyramidal-solenoidal) configuration.

FIG. 2H illustrates an embodiment of an inductor in a conformal solenoidconfiguration.

FIG. 3A shows an example of a single turn circular coil having N layers.

FIG. 3B illustrates an example of a double turn circularspiral-solenoidal coil were each turn has N layers and 2 times N totalnumber of layers.

FIG. 4A illustrates an example of an inductor having a circularcross-section.

FIG. 4B illustrates an example of a conductor having a rectangularcross-section.

FIG. 4C illustrates an embodiment of an inductor having a squarecross-section.

FIG. 4D illustrates an embodiment of an inductor having a triangularcross-section.

FIG. 4E illustrates an example of an inductor having an ellipticalcross-section.

FIG. 4F illustrates a rectangular cross-section of a multi-layer wire.

FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of approximate AC current distribution atincreased frequency due to skin effect in a prior art wire.

FIG. 5A illustrates an embodiment of AC current distribution through themultilayer wire of the present invention.

FIG. 5B shows a graph of skin depth versus frequency for a copper andsilver wire of the prior art.

FIG. 6A illustrates an embodiment of a multi-layer wire of the presentinvention having a circular cross-section.

FIG. 6B illustrates an embodiment of a multi-layer wire of the presentinvention having a rectangular cross-section.

FIG. 7A shows an embodiment of a single turn inductor of the presentinvention having 1 layer.

FIG. 7B shows an embodiment of a single turn inductor of the presentinvention having 11 layers.

FIG. 7C illustrates an example of a single turn inductor of the presentinvention having 20 layers.

FIG. 7D illustrates an embodiment of a single turn inductor of thepresent invention having 26 layers.

FIG. 8 shows a graph illustrating the value of the quality factor as afunction of frequency for an embodiment of the inductor of the presentinvention.

FIG. 9A is a graph illustrating the relative changes in resistance andinductance with the number of layers.

FIG. 9B is a graph illustrating the resultant quality factor at 10 MHzfor the given number of layers.

FIG. 10A is a graph illustrating the quality factor as a function offrequency.

FIG. 10B is a graph illustrating the inductance relative to a 16 layercoil as a function of frequency.

FIG. 10C shows a graph illustrating the resistance relative to the 16layer coil as a function of frequency.

FIG. 11A shows a graph illustrating the quality factor as a function offrequency.

FIG. 11B is a graph illustrating the inductance as a function offrequency.

FIG. 11C is a graph illustrating the resistance as a function offrequency.

FIG. 12A is a graph illustrating the quality factor as a function offrequency for a coil having a metal strip width of 1 mm.

FIG. 12B is a graph illustrating the relative increase in quality factorfor a coil having a metal width of 1.5 mm.

FIG. 12C is a graph illustrating the relative increase in quality factorfor a coil having a metal width of 2 mm.

FIG. 13 illustrates an embodiment of the multi layer multi turn inductorof the present invention comprising a cavity.

FIG. 13A illustrates a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of theinductor of the present invention comprising a cavity fill material.

FIG. 13B illustrates a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of theinductor of the present invention comprising a cavity fill material andan encapsulation material.

FIG. 14 shows an embodiment of the multi layer multi turn inductor ofthe present invention comprising four terminal connections.

FIG. 14A illustrates a magnified view of an embodiment of the terminalconnections shown in FIG. 14.

FIG. 14B illustrates a magnified view of an alternate embodiment of theterminal connections shown in FIG. 14.

FIG. 15 shows an embodiment of a switching connection configurationutilized with the inductor of the present invention.

FIG. 16 illustrates an embodiment of a MOSFET switch utilized with theinductor of the present invention.

FIG. 17 shows an embodiment of multiple MOSFET switches utilized withthe inductor of the present invention.

FIG. 18 illustrates an embodiment of a high frequency mixer electricalcircuit incorporating the inductor of the present invention.

FIG. 19 shows a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of an inductionheating element utilizing the inductor of the present invention.

FIG. 20 illustrates an embodiment of an electrical circuit of aninduction heating utilizing the inductor of the present invention.

FIG. 21 illustrates an embodiment of the inductor of the presentinvention constructed with a printed circuit board stack up.

FIG. 22 shows a table of an embodiment of a fabrication stack up for a6-layer PCB board as obtained from an established PCB manufacturer.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth byway of examples in order to provide a thorough understanding of therelevant teachings. However, it should be apparent to those skilled inthe art that the present teachings may be practiced without suchdetails. In other instances, well known methods, procedures, components,and/or circuitry have been described at a relatively high-level, withoutdetail, in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring aspects of the presentteachings.

The various technologies disclosed herein generally relate to methods,systems and apparatus to design, operate and manufacture an efficientmulti-layer, multi-turn inductor of the present invention, and morespecifically, to methods, systems and apparatus to design, operate andmanufacture a multi-layer, multi-turn inductor for use in electricalcircuits design to operate at radio frequencies (RF) of at least 3 kHzand greater.

An inductor is generally an electrical component or circuit thatintroduces inductance into a circuit. An inductor may consist of, but isnot limited to, a wire or a set of wires. Inductance is generally aproperty of an electric circuit by which an electromotive force isinduced as the result of a changing magnetic flux. The magnetic flux maychange instantaneously or over time and thus become a time-varyingmagnetic flux. The magnetic flux is typically generated when a change ina frequency, a magnitude, a waveform shape, or combinations thereof, ofthe propagating electrical current occurs therewithin.

In addition, when the inductor is in motion, a motional electro motiveforce may develop. The motional EMF is dependent on the velocity ofmotion of the inductor or inductors and the magnitude of the electricalcurrent flowing within the inductor. When the velocity of the inductorand/or the electrical current within the inductor increases, theresulting motional EMF also increases.

“Skin effect” is generally the tendency for an alternating current toconcentrate near the outer part or “skin” of a conductor. For a steadyunidirectional current through a homogeneous conductor, the currentdistribution is generally uniform over the cross section; that is, thecurrent density is the same at all points in the cross section.

With an alternating current, the current is displaced more and more tothe surface as the frequency increases. The conductor's effective crosssection is therefore reduced so the resistance and energy dissipationare increased compared with the values for a uniformly distributedcurrent. The effective resistance of a wire rises significantly withfrequency; for example, for a copper wire of 1-mm (0.04-in.) diameter,the resistance at a frequency of 1 MHz is almost four times the dcvalue. “Skin depth” or “penetration depth” δ is frequently used inassessing the results of skin effect. It is generally accepted that thedepth below the conductor surface at which the current density hasdecreased to about 1/e (approximately 37%) of its value at the surface.This concept applies strictly only to plane solids, but can be extendedto other shapes provided the radius of curvature of the conductorsurface is appreciably greater than δ. For example, at a frequency of 60Hz the penetration depth in copper is 8.5 mm (0.33 in.); at 10 GHz it isonly 6.6×10⁻⁷ m.

Wave-guide and resonant cavity internal surfaces for use at microwavefrequencies are therefore frequently plated with a high-conductivitymaterial, such as silver, to reduce the energy losses since nearly allthe current is concentrated at the surface. Provided the platingmaterial is thick compared to δ, the conductor is as good as a solidconductor of the coating material. “Quality factor” is generallyaccepted as an index (figure of measure) that measures the efficiency ofan apparatus like an inductor, a circuit, an antenna or a resonator. Viais defined herein as an electrically conductive connection from onelayer to another.

A Litz wire is generally a wire constructed of individual film insulatedwires bunched or braided together in a uniform pattern of twists andlength of lay. Reference now is made in detail to the examplesillustrated in the accompanying drawings and discussed below. FIG. 1illustrates a high-level diagram of an inductor 100 for use in anelectronic or electrical circuit. The inductor 100 comprises a coil 102and a multi-layer wire 104. The shape of the coil 102 may be curved,circular, rectangular, triangular, trapezoidal, some other polygon, orconformal to fit within a constrained volume. FIG. 1 illustrates oneexemplary configuration of the coil 102 in the form of a circular shapedcoil 102. The configuration of the coil 102 may be curved, trapezoidal,solenoidal, spiral, spiral-solenoid, or the like. A solenoid coilfollows a helical curve that may have multiple turns where each turn hasthe same radius. A spiral coil configuration may have a number of turnswith a progressively increasing or decreasing radius. Aspiral-solenoidal coil configuration is a combination of a spiral andsolenoidal configuration. Other configurations known to those ofordinary skill may also be utilized to form the coil.

FIGS. 2A-2H illustrate examples of different inductor 100 configurationsthat may be utilized. FIG. 2A illustrates an embodiment of the inductor100 in a circular solenoidal configuration 106. FIG. 2B illustrates anembodiment of the inductor 100 in a square solenoidal configuration 108.FIG. 2C illustrates an example of an inductor in a circular spiralconfiguration 110. FIG. 2D illustrates an example of an inductor in asquare spiral configuration 112. It is understood that other spiralconfigurations, such as rectangular or triangular shape may also beutilized. FIG. 2E illustrates an example of the inductor 100 in amulti-layer square spiral configuration 114. It should be noted thatalthough only two layers are illustrated in FIG. 2E, it is understoodthat any number of layers may be used. As will be described below, whenmultiple layers are used, the multiple layers may be connected using butnot limited to vias, solder, tabs, wires, pins, or rivets. Theseconnectors serve at least the following two purposes: (1) the connectorsconnect the layers of wire for the multi-layer wire 104; and (2) theconnectors connect one turn of the multi-layer wire 104 to a second turnof the multi-layer wire 104. For example, a two-turn inductor 100 then,there would be at least one via from the first turn to the second turn.Other purposes may also be served by the connectors.

For each inductor 100, there exist an optimum number of connectors andan optimum location for each connector. Since there is no closed-formanalytical solution for these, the optimal locations may best beobtained through iterative modeling. However, basic guidelines foroptimizing are given herewithin:

-   -   It is preferred that there be at least 2 connectors connecting        all of the layers that form a single conductor. These two        connectors will ideally be at the two ends of the multilayer        wire (the input and the output of the multilayer wire)    -   It is preferred the total number of connectors should be chosen        commensurate with the needs of a particular application. More        than the optimum number of connectors will increase current        paths which can lead to increased capacitance, increased        resistance, reduced quality factor and higher bandwidth. It        should also be noted that parasitic effects can become more        pronounced when the overall length (height, depth) of the        connector is greater than the optimum at a specific operating        frequency. The length of the connector in essence is the height        of the connector, and this should be kept smaller than about the        (effective wavelength)/20, though keeping it within        wavelength/10 could also lead to a workable embodiment,        depending on the application. The reason for these restrictions        is that the increased connector lengths will introduce        significant phase differences between the different layers of        the multilayer wire being used. These phase differences between        the different layers will introduce unwanted capacitive effects,        which will effectively lower self-resonance frequencies and        increase losses.

Vias can be of the form commonly used in PCB technologies (for example,through-hole, buried, blind) or those utilized in semiconductor or MEMStechnology. Alternatively, the via can be, but is not limited to, anyconductive material that is laser-welded, welded, printed, soldered,brazed, sputtered deposited, wire-bonded and the like in order toelectrically connect at least any two layers and/or all layers.

FIG. 2F illustrates an embodiment of an inductor 100 in a curved orcircular spiral-solenoidal configuration 116. FIG. 2G illustrates anexample of an inductor 100 in a square spiral-solenoidal configuration118. FIG. 2H illustrates an example of an inductor 100 in a conformalsolenoid configuration 120. The inductor 100 in a conformalconfiguration 120 may take the form of but is not limited to a circularor rectangular solenoid or a circular or rectangular spiral. Any of theinductor configurations (106, 108, 110, 112, 114, 116, 118 and 120)shown in FIGS. 2A-2H may be used with the present invention.

The coil 102 of FIG. 1 may have a plurality of turns 122. A turn 122 maybe but is not limited to a bend, fold or an arc in the wire 104 untilthe wire 104 completes a revolution around a central axis A-A of thecoil 102, more specifically a revolution around a central axis point124. A turn 122 may be in the same or similar shape of the coilconfiguration, such as, for example, but not limited to a circle, arectangle, a triangle, some other polygonal shape, or conformal to fitwithin a constrained volume. FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate embodiments of amulti-layer multi-turn (MLMT) inductor 125 of the present invention. Asshown, the MLMT inductor 125 comprises a single turn circular coilhaving N layers 126, where “N” is a number equal to or greater than one.FIG. 3B illustrates an additional embodiment of the MLMT inductor 125comprising a double turn circular solenoidal configuration 106 coil of Nlayers 126.

In general, for any inductor 100, the inductance increases as T^(x),while the resistance increases as T^(y), where T is the number of turns122. In ideal inductors, x and y are 2 and 1 respectively. There areother factors which affect the inductance and resistance (hence thequality factor) which calls for x and y to be less than 2 and 1respectively. Referring to FIG. 10, three performance examples aregiven. The graph compares a 32 Layer-2 Turn inductor with a 32 Layer-1Turn inductor and a 64 Layer-1 Turn inductor. The inductance andresistance for the 32 Layer-2 Turn inductor increase between 3-3.5 timesand 1.7-3 times, respectively; over the 32 Layer-1 Turn inductor in thefrequency range 1 MHz-200 MHz. This increase is very near expectedvalues from simplistic analytical relations wherein resistance isapproximately T; and inductance is approximately T².

The multi-layer wire 104 in FIG. 1 may have but is not limited to acircular, rectangular, square, or triangular cross-sectional shape. Inaddition, other shapes known to those of ordinary skill may also beutilized. FIGS. 4A-4E illustrate examples of cross-sections of wires 104that may be used in the design of an inductor. FIG. 4A illustrates anexample of an inductor 128 having a circular cross-section. FIG. 4Billustrates an example of an inductor 130 having a rectangularcross-section 402. FIG. 4C illustrates an example of an inductor 132having a square cross-section. FIG. 4D illustrates an example of aninductor 134 having a triangular cross-section. FIG. 4E illustrates anexample of an inductor 136 having an elliptical cross-section. FIG. 4Fillustrates a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a multi-layerwire 104 having a first conductive layer 138 and a second conductivelayer 140. An insulating material 430 separates the first conductivelayer 138 from the second conductive layer 140. The first conductivelayer 138 and the second conductive layer 140 are connected with vias144 which traverse the insulating material 142. The conductive layers138, 140 may comprise layers of conductive tape/ribbon/sheet/leaf ordeposited metal having a metal thickness and metal strip width.Furthermore, conductive layers 138, 140 may comprise a liquid metal, afoamed metal or a conductive ink. The metal thickness of the firstconductive layer 138 is identified by line B-B and the metal strip widthof the first layer conductive 138 is identified by line C-C. In oneexample, the thickness of the conductive layer 138, 140 may beapproximately twice a skin depth 146. The skin depth 146 may range fromapproximately one-half of the conductor depth to about equal to theconductor depth. Each layer in a turn will have substantially the samemetal thickness and metal strip width.

FIGS. 5 and 5A illustrate different embodiments of the skin depth 146.As illustrated in FIG. 5, a prior art metallic wire strand 148 is shownin which an electric current 150 is propagating therewithin. Theelectrical current 150 is shown propagating through the surface of thewire strand 148 of the prior art due to the skin effect as previouslymentioned. The resulting skin depth 146 is shallow and resides near theexterior surface of the wire strand 148 of the prior art (FIG. 5). FIG.5B is a graph of skin depth 146 as a function of frequency for standardwires 148 composed of copper and silver. As shown, skin depth decreaseswith increasing frequency for both copper and silver wires 148. Incomparison, FIG. 5A illustrates electrical current 150 propagatingthrough a multi layer wire 104 of the present invention. As shown, thestructure of the multi-layered wire 104 of the present inventionprovides for a wider skin depth 146 that allows the electrical current150 to propagate through a wider thickness of the multi layer wire 104,thereby increasing the efficiency of the propagation of the electricalcurrent 150 therewithin.

The thickness of the insulating material may be sufficient to meet theneeds of the application or equal to the minimum thickness possible bythe available fabrication technology. In one embodiment where PCBtechnology is used for resonator manufacture, the minimum thickness asdictated by the core thickness and is about 150 microns. Current PCBtechnology allows core thickness as low as 25 microns. If semiconductoror MEMS fabrication is used, the thicknesses of both the conductinglayers and the insulating layers can be as thin as a few 100 nanometersor even thinner. In a preferred embodiment, the dielectric layerthickness is less than 200 microns and as perfectly insulating aspossible, and with a permittivity lower than 10.

Similarly, the dielectric layer 142 could be made from severalmaterials, and can be of various configurations. For example, someapplications may require extremely low parasitic capacitance. In suchcases, a non-conducting dielectric with the lowest possible permittivityis preferred. Additionally, it may be desired to increase the insulatinglayer thickness to minimize the parasitic effects. Another example wouldbe for applications that might require ferrite materials to increaseinductance and/or increase magnetic shielding. In such cases, thedielectric layers may be replaced by a ferrite film/block or similarpropertied configuration/material.

It will be apparent to one skilled in the art, therefore, that theinsulating material 142 will be of a thickness such that the thicknessis within the practical capabilities of the manufacturing technologyused to manufacture the inductor 100 and compatible with the efficiencyneeds of the application for which the inductor is intended.

The material of the conductive layers 138, 140 may be copper or gold;however, other materials are possible. In addition, the material of theconductive layers 138, 140 may also comprise, a silver, a conductivepolymer, a conductive adhesive, a conductive composite, or combinationsthereof. To enhance conductivity, copper or gold with a layer ofdeposited silver may also be used. In the case where the inductor 100 isimplanted and may be exposed to body fluids, then the typically knownbiocompatible materials should be utilized, including additions forenhancing conductivity. These may include, but are not limited to,conductive material taken from the group of: titanium, platinum andplatinum/iridium alloys, tantalum, niobium, zirconium, hafnium, nitinol,cobalt-chromium-nickel alloys such as MP35N, Havar®, Elgiloy®, stainlesssteel, gold and its various alloys, palladium, carbon, or any othernoble metal.

Depending on the application, the insulating material 142 may be (i)air, (ii) a polyimide material such as Kapton®, (iii) a dielectric witha low permittivity (such as, for example, Styrofoam®, silicon dioxide,or any suitable biocompatible ceramic), (iv) a non-conductive dielectricwith a high permittivity, (v) a ferrite material, (vi) a pyroelectricmaterial, or (vii) a combination of the materials listed above. Thechoice of material or combination of materials may result from factorssuch as the fabrication process, cost and technical requirements. Forexample, if a high capacitive effect is required to affect a lowerself-resonance frequency of an inductor, a high permittivity dielectricmight be preferred, or, a combination of materials including a ferritefilm or ferrite block might be preferred to increase the self-inductanceof the inductor. In addition, the use of a ferrite core may be used toprovide increased performance.

FIGS. 6A and 6B illustrate embodiments of different cross-sectionalconfigurations of the multi-layer wire 104. FIG. 6A illustrates amulti-layer wire 104 having a circular cross-section 152. FIG. 6Billustrates a multi-layer wire 104 having a rectangular cross-section154.

FIG. 6B illustrates a via 156 that connects the conductive layers 138,140 that is positioned at a port or input 158, which is the beginning ofthe wire 104. Depending on the specific application, the positioning ofthe vias 144, 156 that connect the conductive layers 138, 140 may impactthe performance of the inductor 100. For example, insufficient vias 144,156 may lead to phase differences between the different layers 138, 140,142. Conversely, an abundance of vias 144, 156 may lead to additionalcyclical current paths that may increase the resistive loss. The vias144, 156 may be located at the beginning of the wire (e.g., port, input,etc), or at one or more locations along the wire. Additionally, the vias144, 156 between one set of two or more conductive layers 138, 140 maybe at a different location than another set of two or more conductivelayers 138, 140. It is understood that several variations may bepossible depending on the application and the system design. The via144, 156 can be made using techniques standard to the technology beingutilized for the fabrication of the multi-layer multi-turn structure. Inother cases, the vias 144, 156 can be implemented using solderingtechniques, such as, by connecting the several layers 138, 140 at vialocations using electric solder, welded tabs, laser weld tacking, orother commonly known electrical connecting techniques.

The MLMT inductor 125 of the present invention may also be designed toachieve a specified inductance and performance efficiency performance ina configuration that is restricted in size. More specifically, a sizethat is restricted dimensionally in length, width, height or anycombination thereof, or a size that is restricted by volume, or bothdimension(s) and volume. To achieve a specific inductance having a lowerelectrical resistance in having a smaller size, multiple conductivelayers 138, 140 are utilized that are preferably connected in parallel.Furthermore, parallel electrical connections between conducting layers138, 140 is preferred in achieving higher inductance values in the MLMTinductor structure 125.

In addition, a thin layer of a conductive material, i.e., a conductivetrace, may be deposited the surface of an insulative layer and/orconductive layer.

When designing for combinations of lower resistance and higherinductance, one embodiment is to construct the MLMT inductor 125comprising at least two conductor layers 138, 140 that are electricallyconnected in parallel. In another embodiment, multiple subassembliescomprising alternate conductive 138, 140 and insulative layers 142 maybe electrically connected in series. For example, a first inductorsubassembly comprising a first conductor layer spaced apart from asecond conductor layer, a first insulator layer positioned in the spacebetween the first and second conductor layers wherein the first andsecond conductor layers are electrically connected in parallel may beelectrically connected in series to a second inductor subassemblycomprising a third conductor layer spaced apart from a fourth conductorlayer, a second insulator layer positioned between the third and fourthconductor layers, wherein the third and fourth conductor layers areelectrically connected in parallel. Furthermore, the first, second,third or fourth conductive layers may comprise a thin conductive layer,or conductive trace, of the order of microns, composed of a similar ordiffering conductive material. Likewise the first and second insulativelayers may comprise a thin insulative layer or insulative trace, of theorder of microns.

Furthermore, this embodiment may be constructed having respectiveconductor and insulative layers 138, 142 with layer thicknesses that arethe same or different from each other. Likewise, the respectiveconductive and insulative layers 138, 142 may be constructed with awidth that is the same or different.

Further, for all the wires or traces discussed above, the width, thediameter, or dimensions of the shape of the wire or conductive trace maydiffer or be the same. In each case, the proximity effect must beconsidered in achieving the final performance. It will be obvious tothose skilled in the art that any of the elements given in theembodiments above may be used to achieve a specific inductance and/orparticular design specification requirements. As defined herein,“proximity effect” is defined as the obstruction of the flow ofelectrical current that caused is caused by the magnetic field(s) ofadjacent conductor(s). The alternating magnetic field emanating fromadjacent conductors induces eddy currents in adjacent conductors, thusaltering and obstructing the overall distribution of current flowingthrough them.

As will be described herein, the inductor 125 is preferably designedwith a high inductor quality factor (QF) to achieve efficient transferof inductance that reduces intrinsic resistive losses of the inductor athigh frequencies. The quality factor is the ratio of energy stored by adevice to the energy lost by the device. Thus, the QF of an inductor isthe rate of energy loss relative to the stored energy of the inductor.

A source device carrying a time-varying current, such as an inductor,possesses energy which may be divided into three components: 1)resistive energy (W_(res)), 2) radiative energy (W_(rad)), and 3)reactive energy (W_(rea)). In the case of inductors, energy stored isreactive energy and energy lost is resistive and radiative energies,wherein the inductor quality factor is represented by the equationQ=W_(rea)/(W_(res)+W_(rad)).

In operation, radiative and resistive energies, in the form of radiativeand resistive electrical resistances, are released by the device, inthis case the inductor, to the surrounding environment.

As such, inductors 125 of the present invention are designed to minimizeboth resistive and radiative energies while maximizing reactive energy.In other words, inductors, particularly inductors 125 operating at RFfrequencies and greater, benefit from maximizing Q. In general, this isaccomplished through a reduction in the “skin effect” of the conductingmaterials within the inductor. The “skin effect” is generally reducedthrough the utilization of combining a multitude of conductors having athin thickness or narrow diameter thereby increasing the overallcross-sectional area of the conducting skin within the inductor.

By example, the quality factor of an inductor varies according to thefollowing relationship:

$Q = \frac{2\pi\;{fL}}{R}$where f is the frequency of operation, L is the inductance, and R is thetotal resistance (ohmic+radiative). As QF is inversely proportional tothe resistance, a higher resistance translates into a lower qualityfactor.

A higher quality factor may be achieved using multiple layers in amulti-layer wire 104 for a single turn of coil. Increasing the number ofturns 122 in a coil 102 may also be used to increase the quality factorof the structure. For a design at a constant frequency, there may be anoptimum number of layers 126 to reach a maximum quality factor. Oncethis maxima is reached, the quality factor may decrease as more layersare added. The design variables that may be used for the multi-layermulti-turn inductor 125 structure include:

-   -   a. Metal strip width, w_(n) (e.g. w₁: width of the 1^(st)        conductive layer, w_(k): width of the k^(th) conductive layer).        Also referred to as metal width or strip width    -   b. Number of conductive layers 138, 140 per turn, N_(n) (e.g.        number of layers in 1^(st) turn, N₁)    -   c. Thickness of each conductive layer 138, 140, d_(n) (e.g. d₁:        thickness of 1^(st) layer, d_(k): thickness of k^(th) layer)    -   d. Thickness of insulation, d_(n) (e.g. di₁: thickness of        insulation under 1^(st) layer, di_(k): thickness of insulation        under k^(th) layer)    -   e. Number of turns 122, T    -   f. Number of vias 144, 156 connecting the different conductive        layers 138, 140 in each turn    -   g. Location of vias 144, 156 connecting the different conductive        layers 138, 140 in each turn    -   h. Shape (circular, rectangular, some polygon; depends on the        application; for e.g. could be conformal to fit just outside or        just inside some device or component)    -   i. Configuration: solenoidal, spiral, spiral-solenoidal, etc)    -   j. Dimensions (length, width, inner radius, outer radius,        diagonal, etc.)

The quality factor (Q) of the inductor 125 can also be defined as(frequency (Hz)×inductance (H)/resistance (ohms), where frequency is theoperational frequency of the circuit, inductance is the inductanceoutput of the inductor and resistance is the combination of theradiative and reactive resistances that are internal to the inductor.

Below, exemplary multi-layer multi-turn designs based on the aboveparameters will be described. In one example, the inductor 125 may be asingle turn circular coil having multi-layer wire 104, as illustrated inFIGS. 7A-7D. The single turn coil includes a single turn and may includea metal strip width of approximately 1.75 mm, a metal thickness ofapproximately 0.03 mm, an insulating layer of approximately 0.015 mm,and an outer radius of approximately 5 mm. The wire 104 may have between5 and 60 layers 126, such as 5, 11, 20, 26, 41, or 60 layers 126. Forexample, FIG. 7A shows a single turn inductor having 1 layer 126, FIG.7B shows a single turn inductor having 11 layers 126, FIG. 7C shows asingle turn inductor 125 having 20 layers 126, and FIG. 7D shows asingle turn inductor having 26 layers. Although specific examples areshown in FIGS. 7A-7D, it is understood that the wire 104 may have lessthan 5 or more than 60 layers 126 in order to achieve a high qualityfactor. The corresponding coil thickness for the range of 5 to 60 layers126 may be between approximately 0.2 mm to 3 mm, such as for example,0.2, 0.5, 1, 1.25, 2.05, or 3 mm, respectively. As mentioned above, itis understood that by varying the number of layers 126 in the wire 104,the number of turns 122, the metal thickness, and the metal strip width,a higher quality factor may be obtained. For example, for a 1 layersingle turn coil 102 having a metal thickness of 0.03 mm and a metalstrip width of 1.75 mm, the quality factor at 10 MHz is approximately80. Increasing the number of layers 126 from 1 to 11 and keeping a metalthickness of 0.03 mm and a metal strip width of 1.75 mm, the qualityfactor is increased to approximately 210. Generally, an increase in thenumber of layers 126 per turn results in an increase in quality factoruntil maxima is reached, after which the quality factor starts todecrease. This decrease may occur when the total height of the inductorbecomes comparable to its radius. With electrical components, thedegradation starts due to greatly increased parasitic effects due to themultiple layers (e.g. capacitance and proximity effects). In the presentexample, increasing the layers 126 to 20, 26, 41 and 60 results inquality factors of approximately 212, 220, 218 and 188, respectively.

Two inductor configurations were considered, the specifics of which areprovided in Tables 1 and 2 below. The results indicate that the presentteachings allow for inductors comprising significantly higher qualityfactors than currently existing inductors utilizing prior arttechnology. The performance improvement shown herein applies when otherknown methods of construction are utilized.

EXAMPLES

Table 1 illustrates an example wherein a TDK model MLG1608B4N7STinductor was compared to a computer generated model of an MLMT inductor125 of the present invention. The MLMT inductor 125 modeled such that itprovides an inductance that is similar to the TDK model inductor. Asshown in Table 1 below, the MLMT inductor of the present invention has asimilar inductance of about 4.72 nH vs. the 4.7 nH of the TDK inductoroperating at 100 MHz. However, the quality factor of the MLMT inductor125 was determined to be about 2.8 times greater than the TDK inductoroperating at about 100 MHz.

TABLE 1 TDK MLMT Inductor Inductance Inductance Frequency (nH) QualityFactor (nH) Quality Factor 100 MHz 4.7 10 4.72 38

Table 2 illustrates an example wherein a Sunlord model HQ1005C1N5inductor was compared to a computer generated model of an MLMT inductor125 of the present invention. The MLMT inductor 125 was modeled toprovide an inductance that is similar to the Sunlord model inductor. Asshown in Table 2 below, the MLMT inductor 125 of the present inventionhas a similar inductance of about 1.7 nH vs. the 1.5 nH of the TDKinductor operating at 250 MHz. However, the quality factor of the MLMTinductor was determined to be about 1.25 times greater than the Sunlordinductor operating at about 250 MHz.

TABLE 2 Sunlord MLMT Inductor Inductance Inductance Frequency (nH)Quality Factor (nH) Quality Factor 250 MHz 1.5 20 1.7 45

It is also understood that the metal strip width may be increased toachieve a higher quality factor. FIGS. 8, 10A, 11A, 12A, 12B, and 12Cprovide graphs of the value of the quality factor as a function offrequency. FIG. 9A is a graph illustrating the relative changes inresistance and inductance with the number of layers. FIG. 9B illustratesthe resultant quality factor at 10 MHz. It should be noted that withregard to FIGS. 9A and 9B, the data points on the graph correspond asdata point 1 is for 1 layer, data point 2 is for 11 layers, data point 3is for 20 layers, data point 4 is for 26 layers, data point 5 is for 41layers, and data point 6 is for 60 layers. To ensure electrical flowthrough all layers of the structure, it is preferable that at least twovias 144, 156 be included for any multi-layer wire 104 and/or structure.These two vias 144, 156 are preferably located at the ports 158 of thewire/structure 104. As can be seen from FIGS. 8 and 9A-9B, optimalperformance for 10 MHz is achieved for an inductor 125 configurationhaving 26 layers 126 and 1 turn 122. For this inductor configuration,the peak quality factor is obtained around 35 MHz and is approximately1100.

In another example, the inductor 125 may be a single turn circular coilof multi-layer wire 104 and may have a metal strip width ofapproximately 1 mm, a metal thickness of approximately 0.01 mm, aninsulating layer of approximately 0.005 mm, and an outer radius ofapproximately 5 mm. The wire 104 may have between 16 and 128 layers,such as 16, 32, 64, or 128 layers. However it is understood that thewire 104 may have less than 16 or more than 128 layers 126 in order toachieve a high quality factor. The corresponding coil thickness for therange of 16 to 128 layers 126 may be between approximately 0.25 mm to 2mm, such as for example, 0.25, 0.5, 1, or 2 mm, respectively. In thisexample, the quality factor improves with increasing the number oflayers, with larger quality factors achieved at higher frequencies. Forexample, at a frequency of 10 MHz, the quality factor for 16, 32, 64 and128 layers is approximately 127, 135, 140 and 185, respectively. Thepeak quality factor increases to nearly 2900 at approximately 450 MHzunder these design parameters. The relative resistance may be lowestaround the frequency at which the conductor thickness is about twice theskin depth. In this example, that frequency is 160 MHz.

FIGS. 10A-10C are graphs illustrating the performance parameters andtrends. FIG. 10A is a graph illustrating the quality factor as afunction of frequency. FIG. 10B is a graph illustrating the inductancerelative to a 16 layer coil as a function of frequency. FIG. 10C is agraph illustrating the resistance relative to the 16 layer coil as afunction of frequency. As can be seen in FIG. 10A, the quality factorimproves with an increasing number of layers with relatively largerquality factors at higher frequencies. This is further shown in FIGS.10B and 10C where it is shown that where the inductance is relativelyconstant (as compared to a 16 layer 1 turn coil) with frequency, whilethe resistance decreases as frequency increases as shown by the troughsaround 100 MHz in FIG. 10C. The peak quality factor goes up toapproximately 2900 at around 450 MHz.

In yet another example, all design parameters are the same as in thepreceding example for a 32 layer wire 104, except the number of turns isdoubled, resulting in a double turn circular coil. The inductance andresistance for this 32 layer, double turn inductor 125 increase between3 to 3.5 times and 1.7 to 3 times, respectively, over the 32 layer,single turn inductor in the frequency range of 1 MHz to 200 MHz. FIGS.11A-C are graphs illustrating the performance parameters and trends forthe 32 layer, double turn inductor 125 compared to the 32 and 64 layer,single turn inductors 125 in the preceding example. FIG. 11A is a graphillustrating the quality factor as a function of frequency. FIG. 11B isa graph illustrating the inductance as a function of frequency. FIG. 11Cis a graph illustrating the resistance as a function of frequency. Ascan be seen in FIGS. 11A-C, for the 32 layer, double turn inductor 125at frequencies below about 200 MHz, the inductance is nearly constantand the resistance follows trends similar to the single turnembodiments. At frequencies greater than 200 MHz, both the inductanceand resistance rise rapidly due to the contribution of parasiticcapacitance, which is explained below. Even though the quality factorremains high at frequencies greater than 200 MHz, there may besignificant electric fields present due to the capacitive effect, whichmay not be acceptable in some applications.

It is also contemplated that other designs may be used for the inductorin order to achieve higher quality factors. For example, for a singleturn circular coil of multi-layer wire 104 that may have between 16 and128 layers, such as 16, 32, 64, or 128 layers, the coil may include ametal strip width of approximately 1 mm, a metal thickness ofapproximately 0.01 mm, an insulating layer 142 of approximately 0.01 mm,and an outer radius of approximately 10 mm. Increasing the width of themetal reduces the resistance and the inductance, resulting in a higherquality factor. Due to the overall large size of the inductor (outerradius ˜10 mm), the relatively small increase in the width (w) does notreduce the inductance. It should be noted that the same increase inmetal width for a smaller inductor, such as, for example, with outerradius approximately 5 mm, the decrease in inductance would have beenhigher. FIGS. 12A-C are graphs illustrating the quality factors as afunction of frequency for this example with a metal strip width ofapproximately 1 mm, 1.5 mm and 2 mm, respectively. In this example, thequality factor at 379 MHz is approximately 1425 for a metal strip widthof 1 mm. Increasing the metal strip width to 1.5 mm and 2 mm increasesthe quality factor to approximately 1560 and 1486, respectively.

It should be noted that all the QF values mentioned above for theinductors are in free space (conductivity=0, relative permittivity=1).It is expected that the presence of a real world environment will affectthe QF. For example, an inductor with a QF˜400 in free space could havethe QF decrease when it is placed next to the human body. Further, ifthe inductor is placed inside the human body with little or noinsulating coating, the QF might further decrease. Applying a coatingsufficiently thick or enclosing in a sufficiently large package beforeplacing inside the human body might decrease the change in the QF of theinductor. It is expected that similar changes in QF characteristics willoccur in any medium and in the proximity of any material, with thedeviation from free space depending on the electrical properties of thematerial/medium and the distance from it. Such a decrease in the qualityfactor of inductors, particularly those inductors of the prior art, maycompromise the performance of the electrical circuit of and/orassociated device within which the inductor operates. Since the qualityfactor of prior art inductors is generally less than the multi-layer,multi-turn inductor 125 of the present invention, a further reduction inthe quality factor may result in dysfunction of the circuit or theinoperability of the device within which the inductor resides.

In yet another preferred embodiment as shown in FIG. 13, the MLMTinductor 125 of the present invention may comprise a cavity 160 thatresides within the perimeter of the MLMT structure. While inductors arecommonly fabricated with an air-core, the inductors fabricated usingmultilayer technologies such as thin film, ceramic and other similarprocesses (e.g. rigid printed circuit board (PCB), flexible printedcircuit board (flex PCB), low temperature cofired ceramic (LTCC), hightemperature cofired ceramic (HTCC), etc.) have the conductive turnsmostly immersed in the substrate material. In certain instances, thissubstrate material may affect the performance parameters of theinductor. For example, it may lower the QF as well as the self-resonancefrequency. This effect becomes more dominant with increasing frequencyas it stems from the interaction of the electric and magnetic fieldswith the substrate material. It is also more dominant in substratematerials with a high dielectric constant. A way to reduce the substrateeffect may be to introduce a cavity within the inductor volume (this maynot be possible in all inductor configurations and/or fabricationprocesses). This cavity may be introduced during the fabricationprocess, or may be created during a post-processing step.

The cavity 160 preferably extends vertically through the structure ofthe inductor such that it extends through the top and bottom surfaces ofthe MLMT inductor 125 structure. As shown, the cavity 160 comprises acavity width 162 and a cavity length 164 and a cavity depth 166 thatdefines a cavity sidewall 168. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 13, thecavity width 166 is about equal to the width of the inductor 125, thecavity length 164 is about equal to the length of the inductor 125 andthe cavity depth 166 is about equal to the depth of the inductor 125.Alternately, the cavity width 162 may range from about 50 percent toabout 99 percent of the width of the inductor 125. The cavity length 164may range from about 80 percent to about 99 percent of the length of theinductor 125. Preferably, the cavity depth 166 may be about equal to thedepth of the inductor 125 such that the cavity 160 extends through thetop and bottom surfaces of the inductor 125 of the present invention.

The cavity 160 feature within the inductor structure is designed tofurther improve the quality factor of the inductor 125 at a givenoperating frequency or frequencies as compared to an inductor withoutthe cavity 160 feature. In general, the incorporation of the cavity 160feature reduces the degrading effects of parasitic capacitance (C_(par))and parasitic resistance (R_(par)). Parasitic capacitance is hereindefined as undesirable capacitance that exits internally within thestructure of a circuit element. Parasitic capacitance causes thebehavior of the circuit element to divert from its intended behavior.Parasitic resistance is herein defined as undesirable electricalresistance that manifests itself within an electrical circuit orcomponent, such as a capacitor or inductor.

As previously mentioned, the quality factor of an inductor can generallybe defined as

$\frac{X_{eff}}{R_{eff}}$where X_(eff) is the effective electrical reactance and R_(eff) is theeffective resistance. Given the equations, were:

$R_{eff} = \frac{R_{par}}{\left( {1 - {\omega^{2}{LC}_{par}}} \right)^{2} + \left( {\omega\; C_{par}L_{par}} \right)^{2}}$$X_{eff} = \frac{\omega\left( {L - {\omega^{2}{LC}_{par}} - {C_{par}R_{par}^{2}}} \right)}{\left( {1 - {\omega^{2}{LC}_{par}}} \right)^{2} + \left( {\omega\; C_{par}L_{par}} \right)^{2}}$

As the operating frequency increases, Rpar and Cpar also increase,thereby degrading the quality factor of the inductor. Since theparasitic capacitance is directly proportional to the dielectricconstant of the material, replacing the higher dielectric constantmaterial with air, having a dielectric constant of about 1, reduces theparasitic capacitance effects within the inductor and thereforeincreases the inductor's quality factor. Thus, by removing materialtherewithin, through the incorporation of the cavity 160, increases thequality factor of the inductor 125 of the present invention. As can beseen in FIG. 13, the inductor 125 of the present invention comprisingthe cavity 160 feature, particularly at frequencies greater than 1 GHz,exhibits a greater quality factor than the inductor 125 without such afeature.

The cavity 160 of the inductor 125 may also be used as a tuningmechanism. For example, when the multilayer inductor is used in aself-resonance mode, the self-resonance being achieved as a result ofthe interaction between its inductance and parasitic capacitance, theresonance frequency may be modified by fabricating a cavity comprisingdifferent volumes. Consider, for example, an inductor 125 builtcomprising a relatively high dielectric constant material (FIG. 13),where the permittivity of the material is about 70. By changing thecavity volume from nearly zero (having a self-resonance frequency ofabout 2.26 GHz), to the condition where the structure is fully enclosedin the material (self-resonance frequency ˜1.9 GHz), a change inresonance frequency of about 15.9% is achieved. Furthermore, byincorporating a material having a higher dielectric constant in theinductor 125, the self-resonance frequency could increase from about 25percent to about 50 percent depending on the specific material used.Thus, by modifying the volume of the cavity 160 and by incorporatingdifferent materials comprising different dielectric constants, theresulting resonance frequency may be tuned to a specific value or values(FIGS. 13A and 13B).

FIGS. 13A and 13B illustrate cross-sectional views of embodiments of theMLMT inductor 125 of the present invention in which a cavity fillmaterial 170 is used. As shown in this alternate embodiment, the cavity160 of the MLMT inductor 125 is filled with a material designed tofacilitate tuning of the inductance and/or the quality factor of theinductor 125. The cavity fill material 170 may comprise a metallic, aceramic or a polymeric material. Specific examples may comprise adielectric polymeric or ceramic material. Furthermore, the cavity fillmaterial 170 may comprise ferromagnetic, ferroelectric, piezoelectric,paramagnetic or paraelectric materials.

As shown in the cross sectional view of FIG. 13B, the MLMT inductor 125may be enclosed in an encapsulation material 172. Such encapsulationmaterials 170 may include a polymeric material such as polyimide,polyester or polyurethane. The encapsulation material 174 may be usedwith the MLMT inductor 125 having or not having the cavity 160 as wellas an inductor 125 having or not having the encapsulation material 174.

Computer models of both an embodiment of the multi-layer, multi-turninductor of the present invention and a solenoidal wire wound air coreinductor of the prior art were generated and compared. IE3D™ method ofmoments based electromagnetic simulation software, created by MentorGraphics® of Wilsonville Oreg., was used to generate both models.

The computer models were based on an inductor with a nominal inductanceof 39 nH operating at 50 MHz and 150 MHz. Model “A” represents thestated performance parameters in the manufacturer's datasheet of theprior art wire wound air inductor having a length of about 6.35 mm, awidth of about 4.95 mm, a height of about 4.2 mm, and a self resonatingfrequency of between about 1.0 GHz to about 1.5 GHz.

A second model, model “B” was generated based on the structuralcharacteristics of the multi-layer, multi-turn inductor 125 of thepresent invention. Like model “A”, the second model “B” inductor 125 wasdesigned with a nominal inductance of 39 nH. The second model inductorwas designed with a length of about 6.35 mm, a width of about 4.95 mm aheight of about 1.6 mm, and a self-resonance frequency of about 1.6 GHz.The difference in height is due to the compact, more efficient design ofthe multi-layer, multi-turn inductor of the present invention. The tableshown below details the modeled electrical performance of the modeledinductors.

TABLE 3 Inductance Quality Factor Volume Model Model Model Model ModelModel Frequency A B A B A B  50 MHz 38 nH 38 nH 84.6 115 132 mm³ 51 mm³150 MHz 39 nH 38 nH 135 169 132 mm³ 51 mm³

As shown in table 3 above, the inductor 125 of the present inventioncomprises a quality factor that is greater than 100 operating at about50 MHz and about 150 MHz at volume that is about 62 percent smaller thana wire wound, air core inductor of the prior art. More specifically, atan operating frequency of about 50 MHz, the inductor design of thepresent invention has a Q factor that is about 36 percent greater thanthe prior art and at an operating frequency of about 150 MHz, themulti-layer, multi-turn inductor 125 of the present invention has a Qfactor that is about 25 percent greater than the prior art designedinductor. Thus, the multi-layer, multi-turn inductor 125 of the presentinvention operates at a much greater efficiency with a smaller volumethan an air core wire wound inductor of the prior art.

As noted above, an inductor may exhibit parasitic effects. Associatedwith the inductor is a parasitic capacitance that is frequency dependentand whose contribution to the overall impedance increases withfrequency. As a result of the parasitic capacitance, there exists aself-resonance frequency for the inductor beyond which the inductorbehaves like a capacitor. To prevent the onset of parasitic capacitance,the inductor may be designed such that the inductance is nearlyunchanging around the frequency of operation. Preferably, the slope ofthe reactance versus frequency graph is nearly linear (around thefrequency of operation) with slope, ∂X/∂ω˜L (where X is the reactance,and L is the inductance that was designed for). Operating the inductorin this regime ensures that the parasitic coupling via electric fieldsis kept to a minimum. It is understood that that the X versus ω may notbe perfectly linear due to other effects such as current crowding,proximity and skin effects.

Furthermore, high frequency devices, such as a circuit for wirelesscommunications, often require tunable components residing therein. TheMLMT inductor 125 of the present invention may be used as a circuitcomponent within such a high frequency communication circuit, either toenable tenability of different frequency bands in a multi-band device,or to adapt to a change in an external stimulus, such as in a sensor.

In a preferred embodiment, the MLMT inductor 125 of the presentinvention may be tuned such that its inductance and/or its internalelectrical resistance within the structure can be selectively adjustedor modified to produce a desired effect. In this preferred embodiment,the inductance and/or the quality factor may be selectively adjusted ortuned at a given frequency, frequencies or band of frequencies.

This tunability of the quality factor and/or the inductance may beaccomplished manually or automatically, such as by an electrical means.In one embodiment, a trigger such as a change in the surroundingenvironment such as temperature, pressure, and the like, may elicit achange within the structure of the MLMT inductor 125 that selectivelymodifies the quality factor and/or the inductance of the inductor. Thischange within the MLMT structure may be the result of an electricalsignal or a mechanical switch.

FIG. 14 illustrates an embodiment of a multi-layer multi-turn inductor125 of the present invention. As illustrated, the exemplary multi-layerstructure comprises four layers, a first layer 174, a second layer 176,a third layer 178, and a fourth layer 180 where each layer has one turn.Although the structure of the inductor 125 is illustrated having acurved cross-section, each layer 174, 176, 178, 180 comprising theinductor 125 structure may be constructed with a rectangularcross-section, a circular cross-section, a triangular cross-section, ormay be constructed with a non-limiting polygon cross-section.Furthermore, the layers 174, 176, 178, 180 of the inductor 125 may beformed in a sinusoidal form, an irregular form or a “FIG. 8” form wherethe respective left and right sides of the inductor alternate toopposite sides. The inductor structure 125 further comprises at leastone via 144 that electrically connects at least two layers.

In a preferred embodiment, each of the layers 174, 176, 178, 180comprises at least one terminal. As shown, a first terminal 182 residesalong the first layer 174, a second terminal 184 resides along thesecond layer 176, a third terminal 186 resides along the third layer 178and a fourth terminal 188 resides along the forth layer 180. Eachterminal 182, 184, 186, 188 is constructed such that a gap 189 residesbetween respective first and second ends 183, 185 of the layers. A via144 is preferably positioned within the gap 189 providing electricalconnection therebetween.

As shown in FIG. 14B, a first via 190 is vertically positioned betweenthe first layer 174 and the second layer 176, residing within the gapsof the first and second terminals 182, 184 providing electricalconnection therebetween and thereby forming an “A” inductor structure oftwo layers. A second via 192 is vertically positioned between the thirdand the fourth layers 186, 188 residing within the gaps 189 of the thirdand fourth terminals 186, 188 providing an electrical connectiontherebetween, and thereby forming a “B” inductor structure of twolayers. A third via 193 is vertically positioned along an inner surfaceof the layers providing electrical connection between the four layers.

In a preferred embodiment, the vias may be designed such that theyprovide a switchable electrical connection between the layers. The viaswitch positions may provide an electrically conducting or lowelectrical resistance connection between layers, a high electricalimpedance connection, an electrical open, or an electrical short betweenlayers. Thus by switching the electrical connection between layers, theelectrical resistance within the inductor is modified. Therefore, theresulting inductance and quality factor of the resulting, “effective”inductor is selectively changed.

FIG. 15 shows an embodiment of a schematic illustrating variouselectrical switchable connections between the four layers of theinductor shown in FIG. 14. As illustrated, these switches, SW1-SW9, canbe turned on and off manually or automatically, such as by a computerprogram, thereby providing a multi-layer, multi-turn tunable inductorstructure 125 of the present invention. Table 4 shown below details thepossible switchable configurations of the inductor embodimentillustrated in FIG. 15. It is noted that these connections and layernomenclature are exemplary. The layers are interchangeable and dependenton the overall circuit fabrication process.

TABLE 4 Switches Open Switches Closed Conn 1 SW 1, SW 2, SW 3, SW 4, SW7, SW 8 SW 5, SW 6, SW 9 Conn 2 SW 2, SW 3, SW 5, SW 6, SW 9 SW 1, SW 4,SW 7, SW 8 Conn 3 SW 3, SW 6, SW 8 SW 1, SW 2, SW 4, SW 5, SW 7, SW 9Conn 4 SW 8 SW 1, SW 2, SW 3, SW 4, SW 5, SW 6, SW 9

For example, given the embodied inductor shown in FIG. 14, with an outerradius of about 2 cm, a layer width of about 1 mm and a layer depth ofabout 100 um, the following inductance and quality factor values weremeasured for the 4 different switching connections, Conn 1, Conn 2,Conn3 and Conn 4 as detailed in Table 5 below.

TABLE 5 Conn 1 Conn 2 Conn 3 Conn 4 L L L L Freq (nH) QF (nH) QF (nH) QF(nH) QF 500 KHz  249 11.9 238.6 20.2 883.8 26.5 849 36.9 1 MHz 247 19.8236.8 31.4 879.2 42.6 845 58.1 2 MHz 246 30.7 235.8 45.8 876.9 64 843.585.6

As shown by the measured values in Table 5 above, the ability to changethe electrical connections within the tunable inductor 125 of thepresent invention, effectively changes the inductance and qualityfactors at the different operating frequencies.

FIG. 16 illustrates another tuning embodiment of the inductor of thepresent invention. As shown, a metal oxide semiconductor field effecttransistor (MOSFET) driven switch may be used to tune the multi-layermulti-turn inductor of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 17,multiple MOSFET switches may be used to turn selected layers of theinductor on and off.

In addition to the utilization of various switching embodiments, theincorporation of an alternate or a multitude of different materialscomprising different dielectric constants may also be used to adjust ortune the inductance and quality factor of the inductor of the presentinvention. For example, the center or cavity 160 portion of the inductormay be filled with a polymeric material having a different dielectricconstant than that of the metal layer and the dielectric insulatinglayer positioned between the conducting layers (FIGS. 13A and 13B).

In addition, alternate materials such as a piezoelectric or apyroelectric material may also be incorporated within the structure ofthe multilayer multi turn inductor 125 of the present invention. Forexample, the piezoelectric or pyroelectric material may reside withinthe cavity 160 or alternatively comprise the insulator and/or conductorlayers. A piezoelectric material typically generates an electricalvoltage when a mechanical stress is applied to the material. Apyroelectric material generally generates an electrical voltage when thematerial is exposed to a change in temperature. Therefore, suchmaterials could be incorporated within the structure, such as within alayer 126 or cavity 160, of the inductor 125 to provide the stimuli totune or change the inductance and quality factor of the inductor 125.The impedance and/or quality factor of such an inductor 125 could beautomatically adjusted if the environment, such as the surroundingtemperature or pressure about the inductor changes.

The inductor 125 of the present invention can also be incorporatedwithin various electrical circuits that operate at least at the radiofrequency range of about 3 kHz. In a preferred embodiment, themulti-layer multi-turn inductor 125 can be electrically connected withinan electrical circuit operating at about 1 MHz or greater. Inparticular, such electrical circuits that operate at these frequenciescan, depending on the application, be designed to carry varying amountsof electrical current in a system processing different power levels. Forexample, some inductors used in RF circuits are rated to carry a maximumof about 0.5 A of current. Furthermore, other inductors may be rated tocarry current levels that are less than 0.1 A or greater than 1 A.Typically power levels are driven by the load which can range from a fewmicrowatts to a few watts. Additionally, inductors utilized in inductioncooking systems typically have rated currents that exceed 1 to 2 A. Someinductors utilized in these induction cooking systems carry as much as10-40 A, which can transfer 3-8 kilowatts or more to the load.

Furthermore, an electrical circuit operating within these radiofrequency ranges, may have an electrical power of at least 1 kWattwithin the circuit. Furthermore, such electrical circuits incorporatingthe multi-layer, multi-turn inductor of the present invention may have0.5 kilowatts or more of electrical power within. The multi-layermulti-turn inductor 125 and in particular, the multi-layer wire 104 ofthe present invention are designed to carry the increased electricalcurrent and electrical power within the multiple layers.

FIG. 18 illustrates an embodiment of an electrical circuit 194comprising the inductor 125 of the present invention. Specifically, theelectrical circuit 194 is an exemplary mixer circuit. A mixer circuit isan electrical circuit in which two or more electrical inputs arecombined into one electrical output. In addition to electrical mixercircuits, the inductor 125 of the present invention may be electricallyconnected within other non-limiting electrical circuits that aredesigned to operate at least within the radio frequency range. In apreferred embodiment, the inductor 125 of the present invention may beelectrically connected within an upconverting mixer circuit, adownconverting mixer circuit, modulators, demodulators, synthesizingcircuits such as a PLL synthesizing circuit, amplifying and drivercircuits, detecting circuits such as RF log detectors and RF RMSdetectors, a wireless power circuit, positionable at either or both thetransmitting or receiving side, transceivers and power controllers.

Such circuits incorporating the multi-layer multi-turn inductor 125 ofthe present invention, operating at or within the RF frequency range,may be used to charge an electrochemical cell within a motor vehiclesuch as an automobile, motorcycle, truck or the like. Furthermore, suchelectrical circuits incorporating the multi-layer, multi-turn inductor125 may also be used for induction heating applications such as aninductive heating element of a stove, space heater or furnace.

FIG. 19 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of astovetop induction heating element 196 in which the inductor 125 of thepresent invention is incorporated therewithin. As shown, a cookingvessel 198 is positioned on the top surface of an induction heatingsurface 200. This surface 200 is comprised of a material that does notreact in the presence of adjacent magnetic fields. The surface 200 isdesigned such that the temperature of the surface 200 does not increasethereby preventing the possibility of accidental burns or fire.

In this embodiment, an electric current flows through the MLMT inductor125 which emits an oscillating magnetic field. The magnetic fieldproduced by the inductor 125 interacts with the material (which in somecases may be ferromagnetic, of the cooking vessel 198. Such interactionincreases the heat of the cooking vessel 198 which heats and cooks thefood therein.

In general, an induction heating system comprises an input power andpower factor corrector, a rectifier and output filter, an invertercircuit, a load or resonant circuit and a control circuit. FIG. 20illustrates an embodiment of an electrical circuit comprising the MLMTinductor 125 that is designed for use with an induction heating cookingelement 196. As shown, the circuit comprises at least one computerprocessor 202, an electrical power driver 204, a power factor corrector206, a rectifier 208, the MLMT inductor 125, and a capacitor 210.

Induction heating systems, such as the induction stove top heatingelement 196 shown in FIG. 19, in general provide efficient, high speed,low pollution producing heat. In particular, the MLMT inductor 125 ofthe present invention can be used in the KHz frequency range and unlikeLitz wire induction heating elements of the prior art, can also beoperated in the MHz frequency range. Thus by operating in the MHzfrequency range, the MLMT inductor 125 provides an induction heatingelement that operates more efficiently with lower energy loss. Inaddition, cooking vessels 198 comprising copper and/or aluminum, such asa copper or aluminum base may also be used.

The present teachings also include a method of manufacturing theinductor after the inductor is designed. The multi-layer multi-turninductor 125 may utilize strips of metal that may be deposited through aspecific mask in, for example but not limited to, a PCB/ceramic/metalprinting process or in a semiconductor foundry. An alternative method offabricating the inductor may utilize conductive tape/ribbon/sheet/leafwith one or more tape/ribbon/sheet/leaf placed on top of each otherseparated by an insulating layer and shorting the multiple strips bysoldering at the designated via locations. Another method of fabricatingthe inductor would be to cut out specific shapes from conductive sheetsor “leaf” (for e.g. gold or copper leaf) and following steps thatsimilar to that for the conductive tape/ribbon. A three dimensionalprinting process (such as that offered by Eoplex Technologies) may alsobe used in addition to metal deposition processes like physical vapordeposition, thin film deposition and the like.

The present teachings lend itself to be incorporated with currentfabrication techniques for multi-layer printed wiring board, printedcircuit boards and semiconductor fabrication technologies withmulti-layer interconnects as shown in FIG. 21. As advancements infabrication techniques are made, it is expected that the multi-layermulti-turn inductor 125 will likely benefit greatly from suchimprovements. This compatibility with conventional fabricationtechniques will allow these inductors to be relatively easilyincorporated into conventional circuit boards. Such advances may alsoprovide accurate repeatability and small feature sizes (i.e., highresolution).

The unique arrangement of the layers and customized wire segmentation inthe present system compared with existing design technologiesdemonstrates improved system performance in similar and smallerpackaging volumes as shown by quality factors that are more than twotimes higher than those realized from existing technologies. Bycombining material with specific properties, specifying shapes, lengths,and thicknesses and defining layer order, the present system permitspairing of the inductance and quality factor with a specific applicationto optimally achieve a desired response, including, but not limited to,electrical circuit operation, particularly high frequency RF electricalcircuit operation, and increased electrical power and current carryingapplications.

Another specific advantage of the present system is that it enables amore efficient means of Near Field Magnetic Coupling (NFMC) for powerand/or data transfer in an equivalent or smaller design volume byreducing conductor loss associated with increasing frequencies (due tothe phenomenon referred to as Skin Effect). The proposed system alsoprovides a solution that can be relatively easily achieved by existingmanufacturing techniques (for example multi-layer printed wiring board,FIG. 21), and can therefore be integrated with other circuit componentssuch as ICs, resistors, capacitors, surface mount components, etc. Otheradvantages of the present system includes reducing power consumptionthereby leading to longer battery lives (where applicable), a reductionin the Joule heating of the electrical circuit and/or device, decreasingthe consumption of environmental resources of the appliance/device, andany other benefit derived from a more energy efficient device.Furthermore, such fabrication techniques provide miniaturization of theinductor 125 as shown in the example given in FIG. 22.

In addition, the present invention may be utilized in a system formulti-mode operations. Such a system may include an antenna of amulti-layer multi-turn structure as discussed in U.S. patent applicationSer. Nos. 13/233,569, 13/233,538, 13/233,624, 13/233,663, 13/233,686,13/233,729, 13/233,735, and 13/233,751, incorporated herein byreference.

Near Field Magnetically Coupled (NFMC) systems are becoming popular foruses in diverse applications, such as, for example, wireless power andNear Field Communication (NFC). To reduce size of systems, common RFcircuit systems may be utilized with the ability to switch betweenmodes.

For example, when designing for 13.56 MHz operation, an NFMC system maybe designed to operate in at least two modes: (1) the wireless powermode, to transfer electrical power wirelessly and (2) an NFC mode thatenables near field data transfer. Other modes of communication known tothose of skill in the art are also possible.

In an embodiment, the present invention could be utilized in a radiofrequency identification (RFID) system, wherein the additional NFCfunctionality could be included such that RFID sensors/transponderswould be enabled to detect and communicate with other devices.Specifically, when designing for a lower frequency operation, i.e., inthe 100-500 KHz range, the additional NFC mode could enable lowfrequency RFID detection and communication (for example 135 KHz). Inaddition, the system may also operate at higher frequencies. Forexample, the RFID system could operate in both wireless power and nearfield communication modes at a frequency of about 6.78 MHz.

In such a system, additional circuitry may be utilized to switch betweenthe wireless power mode and communication mode(s). Furthermore, theantenna or RFID sensors/transponders may be designed such that they canbe switched between wireless power transfer mode, NFC mode and/oranother communication mode. The antenna or RFID sensor/transponder mayor may not be comprised of an MLMT structure.

In another embodiment, a system for multi-band wireless power transferand multi-band near field communication is also provided. This systemmay include an antenna or antennas, i.e. an MLMT antenna, enabled formultiband wireless power transfer and/or near field communication. Inthis embodiment, multiple wireless power frequency bands might beutilized for wireless electrical power transfer. In an example,frequencies within in the ranges 100 to 500 KHz, 6.5 MHz to 7 MHz, and13 MHz to 14 MHz may be utilized. However, it is recognized thesefrequency ranges are for illustration purposes and should not beconsidered limiting. Other frequency ranges may also be utilized.

Thus, it is contemplated that by using a multi-layer multi-turn antenna,for multi-mode multi-band wireless power transfer and/or near fieldcommunication, several benefits are possible. These benefits include,for example, interoperability across various protocols and versatilityamong various electrical circuitries and systems. Furthermore, since thesystem incorporates the multi-layer multi-turn structure of the presentinvention, the system requires less space in a device due to its compactefficient structure and circuitry. In addition, the multi-turnmulti-layer structure is cost effective to manufacture. Moreover, suchsystems may include additional circuitry for further enablement offeatures such as mode switching, tuning, and/or interference mitigationamong others.

It is noted however, that the inductive antenna structure utilized inthe system, may or may not be of the MLMT type. In either case, theantenna should be designed such that it is capable of switching betweendifferent frequency bands for wireless power transfer and/or near fieldcommunication. Such switching can be achieved utilizing tuningtechniques discussed above or other switching or tuning techniques knownin the art.

Other applications that may benefit from these electrical circuitscomprising the MLMT inductor 125 of the present invention includeincludes but are not limited to geo-sensing, oil exploration, faultdetection, transportation, consumer electronics, portable electronics,military, defense and medical devices, among other medical implantable,medical non-implantable, commercial, military, aerospace, industrial andother electronic equipment or device applications. It is understood thatthe scope of the invention covers not only any application that willbenefit from increases in efficiency, but also any application that mayrequire the use of an inductive element.

While the foregoing has described what are considered to be the bestmode and/or other examples, it is understood that various modificationsmay be made therein and that the subject matter disclosed herein may beimplemented in various forms and examples, and that the teachings may beapplied in numerous applications, only some of which have been describedherein. It is intended by the following claims to claim any and allapplications, modifications and variations that fall within the truescope of the present teachings.

What is claimed is:
 1. An inductor comprising: a) a first conductorlayer; b) a second conductor layer spaced apart from the first conductorlayer, the first conductor layer and the second conductor layer beingelectrically conductive; c) an insulator layer positioned in the spacebetween the first conductor layer and the second conductor layer therebyforming a structure, wherein an inductor cavity having an inductorcavity width, an inductor cavity length, and an inductor cavity depthresides therewithin; d) at least one connector electrically connectingthe first conductor layer and the second conductor layer; and e) whereinwhen an electrical current is propagated within at least the firstconductor layer, a magnetic flux is generated within the inductor; andf) wherein when a change in at least one of a frequency, a magnitude, ora waveform shape of the propagated electrical current occurs aninductance is generated.
 2. The inductor of claim 1 wherein anelectromotive force is generated when at least one of the frequency, themagnitude, or the waveform shape of the electrical current is changed.3. The inductor of claim 2 wherein a magnitude of the magnetic flux isproportional to the amount of change of at least one of the frequency,the magnitude, or the waveform shape of the electrical current.
 4. Theinductor of claim 1 wherein, an electrical resistance of at least one ofthe first conductor layer is reducible when a cross-sectional area of aconducting skin depth within at least the first conductor layer isincreased.
 5. The inductor of claim 1 wherein a thickness of the firstconductor layer is about equal to a thickness of a skin depth of thefirst conductor layer at a given frequency.
 6. The inductor of claim 1wherein a thickness of the first conductor layer ranges from about 1.25times to about 4 times a thickness of a skin depth of the firstconductor layer at a given frequency.
 7. The inductor of claim 1 whereina thickness of the second conductor layer ranges from about 1.25 timesto about 4 times a thickness of a skin depth of the second conductorlayer at a given frequency.
 8. The inductor of claim 1 wherein a firstconductor layer thickness is about the same as a second conductor layerthickness.
 9. The inductor of claim 1 wherein a first conductor layerthickness is different from a second conductor layer thickness.
 10. Theinductor of claim 1 wherein a thickness of a first skin depth of thefirst conductor layer is about the same as a thickness of a second skindepth of the second conductor layer.
 11. The inductor of claim 1 whereina thickness of a first skin depth of the first conductor layer isdifferent than a thickness of a second skin depth of the secondconductor layer.
 12. The inductor of claim 1 wherein a thickness of theinsulating layer is less than about 5 cm.
 13. The inductor of claim 1wherein the inductor has an inductor quality factor greater than about5.
 14. The inductor of claim 1 wherein the insulator layer comprises afirst material having a first dielectric constant and a second materialhaving a second dielectric constant, the second material resides withinthe cavity, the first and second dielectric constants are not equal. 15.The inductor of claim 14 wherein the second material is selected fromthe group consisting of a polymeric material, a piezoelectric material,a pyroelectric material, and combinations thereof.
 16. The inductor ofclaim 1 wherein the cavity width ranges from about 80 percent to about99 percent of an inductor width.
 17. The inductor of claim 1 wherein thecavity length ranges from about 80percent to about 99 percent of aninductor length.
 18. The inductor of claim 1 wherein the cavity depth isabout equal to an inductor depth, such that the cavity extends through atop inductor surface and a bottom inductor surface.
 19. The inductor ofclaim 1 wherein the cavity depth is less than an inductor depth, suchthat the cavity resides between a top inductor surface and a bottominductor surface.
 20. The inductor of claim 13 wherein the inductorquality factor is defined by the equation $Q = \frac{2\pi\;{fL}}{R}$where f is the frequency of operation, L is the inductance, and R is thetotal ohmic and radiative resistance.
 21. The inductor of claim 1wherein the frequency is at least 3 kHz.
 22. The inductor of claim 1wherein at least one of the first and second conductor layers is formedfrom a thermally conductive material.
 23. The inductor of claim 1wherein the connector is selected from the group of a via, a solder, atab, a wire, a pin, a rivet, a filled mesh structure, a conductivepolymer, a conductive composite, a conductive adhesive, a liquid metal,a foamed metal, and combinations thereof.
 24. The inductor of claim 1wherein at least one connector electrically connects the first conductorlayer and the second conductor layer in parallel.
 25. The inductor ofclaim 1 wherein the first conductor layer and the second conductor layerform a structure in which the first and second conductor layers arepositioned in about a parallel orientation, about perpendicular, or atan angular relationship with respect to each other.
 26. The inductor ofclaim 1 comprising a third conductor layer and a fourth conductor layerelectrically connected in parallel or series and are further connectedelectrically in series or parallel with the third and fourth conductorlayers.
 27. The inductor of claim 1 wherein the inductor is electricallyconnectable with an electrical circuit operating at about 100 kHz orgreater.
 28. The inductor of claim 27 wherein the electrical circuit isselected from the group consisting of a mixer circuit, an impedancematching circuit, an upconverting mixer circuit, a downconverting mixercircuit, a modulator, a demodulator, a synthesizing circuit, a PLLsynthesizing circuit, an amplifying circuit, an electrical drivercircuit, an electrical detecting circuit, an RF log detector, an RF RMSdetector, an electrical transceiver, a power controller, andcombinations thereof.
 29. The inductor of claim 1 wherein the inductoris electrically connectable within an induction heating circuit.
 30. Theinductor of claim 1 wherein a control circuit is electricallyconnectable to the inductor.
 31. The inductor of claim 1 wherein atleast the first and second conductor layers has at least a partialrevolution.
 32. The inductor of claim 1 wherein the first conductorlayer or the second conductor layer comprises a material selected fromthe group consisting of copper, titanium, platinum, platinum and iridiumalloys, tantalum, niobium, zirconium, hafnium, nitinol,cobalt-chromium-nickel alloys, stainless steel, gold, a gold alloy,palladium, carbon, silver, a noble metal, a conductive polymer, aconductive adhesive, a conductive composite, a liquid metal, a foamedmetal, a conductive tape, a conductive ribbon, a conductive foil, aconductive leaf, a wire, a deposited metal, a biocompatible material,and combinations thereof.
 33. The inductor of claim 1 wherein at leastone insulator layer is formed from an electrically insulative material.34. The inductor of claim 1 wherein the insulator layer comprises anelectrically insulative material selected from the group consisting ofair, polystyrene, silicon dioxide, a biocompatible ceramic, a conductivedielectric material, a non-conductive dielectric material, apiezoelectric material, a pyroelectric material, a ferrite material, andcombinations thereof.
 35. An inductor comprising: a) a first inductorsubassembly comprising: i) a first conductive conductor layer; ii) asecond conductive conductor layer spaced apart from the first conductorlayer, the first conductor layer and the second conductor layer beingelectrically conductive; iii) a first insulator layer positioned in thespace between the first conductor layer and the second conductor layers;iv) a first cavity having a first cavity width, a first cavity length,and a first cavity depth residing within the first inductor subassembly;and v) a first connector electrically connecting the first conductorlayer and the second conductor layer in parallel; b) a second inductorsubassembly comprising: i) a third conductor layer and a fourthconductor layer spaced apart from the third conductor layer, the thirdconductor layer and the fourth conductor layer being electricallyconductive; ii) a second insulator layer positioned in the space betweenthe third conductor layer and the fourth conductor layers; iii) a secondcavity having a second cavity width, a second cavity length, and asecond cavity depth residing within the second inductor subassembly; andiv) a second connector electrically connecting the third conductor layerand the fourth conductor layer in parallel, wherein the first inductorsubassembly is electrically connected in series to the second inductorsubassembly; and c) wherein when an electrical current is propagatedwithin at least the first conductor layer, a magnetic flux is generatedwithin the inductor; and d) wherein when a change in at least one of afrequency, a magnitude, or a waveform shape of the propagated electricalcurrent occurs, an inductance is generated.
 36. The inductor of claim 35wherein the first inductor subassembly and the second inductorsubassembly are oriented such that the first and second inductorsubassemblies are positioned about parallel, about perpendicular, or atan angular relationship with respect to each other.